Is our food safe? Who is really watching out for food safety?

admin — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:48:22 +0000

Large companies routinely rely on private audits to prove that their food is safe even though private auditors are dangerously incompetent, according to a New York Times investigation. The private auditor who inspected the Peanut Corporation of America plant responsible for unleashing the massive salmonella contamination was trained to audit bakeries and repeatedly gave the plant a “SUPERIOR” rating, partly because he “never thought that [salmonella] would survive in the peanut butter type environment.”

Audits are not required by the government, but food companies are increasingly requiring suppliers to undergo them as a way to ensure safety and minimize liability. The rigor of audits varies widely and many companies choose the cheapest ones, which cost as little as $1,000, in contrast to the $8,000 the Food and Drug Administration spends to inspect a plant.

Typically, the private auditors inspect only manufacturing plants, not the suppliers that feed ingredients to those facilities. Nor do they commonly test the actual food products for pathogens, even though gleaming production lines can turn out poisoned fare.

As in the Georgia peanut case, auditors are also usually paid by the food plants they inspect, which some experts said could deter them from cracking down. Yet food companies often point to an auditor’s certificate as a seal of approval.

The baking institute, which is based in Manhattan, Kan., and is also known as AIB International, says it inspected more than 10,000 food production sites in 80 countries last year. James R. Munyon, its president and chief executive, said his group’s inspections were reliable and tough, no matter who pays for them, but he declined to elaborate on specific audits.

Even worse, employees with safety concerns are told to defer to the private audits.

Both the government and industry are aware of the problem. The government’s solution? “Expanding the role of private auditors to inspect the more than 200,000 foreign facilities that ship food to the United States.”

Robert A. LaBudde, a food safety expert who has consulted with food companies for 30 years, said, “The only thing that matters is productivity.” He added that “you only get in trouble if someone in the media traces it back to you, and that’s rare, like a meteor strike.”

Dr. LaBudde said a sausage plant hired him five years ago to determine the species of bacillus plaguing its meat. But the owner then refused to complete the testing. “I called them ‘anthrax sausages,’ and said they could be killing older people in the state, and still they wouldn’t do it,” he said, declining to name the company.

Food Safety Problems Slip Past Private Inspectors [The New York Times]

Foods to avoid while pregnant. Food safety during Pregnancy

admin — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 18:55:00 +0000

Food Safety While Pregnant

This is a list of suggestions only.
If you have eaten any of these, do not panic. This is just a suggested list. I ate hot dogs and blue cheese, mayonnaise and medium rare beef while pregnant and I have 3 healthy kids.
My opinion is that you just use common sense and enjoy your pregnancy and be aware of what you are eating. You can check here for the FDA lists of banned foods for updates. They have a search feature on their website, so you can look up any products you may be concerned about.
One thing I would be extra careful about right now, are any foods containing melamine.
New food items are being found daily, so please be aware of that.
(This is mostly outside the USA, but I have many visitors from around the world)


It's important to know which foods are safe to eat and which you need to avoid while pregnant.

Eat a safe pregnancy diet, and learn about safe food storage and handling by following these tips from the Clemson University Agricultural Extension.
Don't eat:
    * Raw meat such as sushi, seafood, rare or uncooked beef, or poultry because of the risk of contamination with coliform bacteria, toxoplasmosis, and salmonella.
    * Raw eggs, or foods containing raw egg such as Caesar dressing, mayonnaise, homemade ice cream or custard, unpasteurized eggnog, or Hollandaise sauce because raw eggs may be contaminated with salmonella.
    * Soft cheese such as blue cheese, feta, Brie, Camambert, and Latin-American soft white cheeses such as queso blanco and queso fresco because they may harbor harmful bacteria.
    * Fish containing accumulated levels of mercury in their fatty tissues such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish. When a pregnant woman consumes large amounts of mercury, her baby may suffer brain damage resulting in developmental delays (for example, delays in learning to walk or talk).
    * Fish containing high levels of an industrial pollutant called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in their fatty tissues such as bluefish and striped bass, and freshwater fish such as salmon, pike, trout, walleye from contaminated lakes and rivers. According to the March of Dimes, consumption of large amounts of PCBs by pregnant women is linked to decreased attention, memory, and IQ in their babies. Check with your local Health Department to determine which fish in your area are safe to eat.
Exercise Caution:
    * According to the March of Dimes, deli meats have led to outbreaks of a form of food poisoning called Listeriosis, that is particularly harmful to fetuses. While the risk is low, you may want to thoroughly reheat deli meats to an internal temperature of 165 degrees (including hot dogs) or avoid them altogether.

    * Minimize the amount of liver you eat. According to the March of Dimes, animal liver contains very high levels of vitamin A. While vitamin A is good for you, women who consume too much may risk a higher incidence of birth defects in their babies (however, studies are not conclusive). Since you're probably already taking prenatal vitamins and eating other vitamin A-containing foods, it's better to be safe and not consume liver on a regular basis. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended has that pregnant woman maintain their vitamin A intake around 8,000 IU and that vitamin A be taken in the form of beta-carotene, which is not considered toxic.

    * According to the FDA, consumption of artificial sweeteners is safe for the general public. No studies show conclusively that it's harmful to consume artificial sweeteners during pregnancy. However, this is a personal decision, and for your peace of mind--and just to be on the safe side--you might decide to limit your consumption of artificial sweeteners during pregnancy. Instead, substitute fruit juice with sparkling water when you need a light, refreshing drink.

    * According to a 1999 U.S. Health and Human Services press release, raw sprouts have led to some incidents of salmonella outbreaks. They advise that pregnant women eat sprouts that are cooked, or avoid eating them altogether.

BannedFoods.net » pregnancy banned foods

Is our food safe? Who is really watching out for food safety?

Foods to avoid while pregnant. Food safety during Pregnancy