Food & Water Watch is denouncing beef imports from Brazil and Argentina. Executive Director Wenonah Hauter released a statement about the USDA lifting restrictions on these imports. Those countries have “a history of the deadly disease of foot and mouth disease in animal herds.” There has not been a case of FMD in the United … Read more
The USDA this summer proposed to amend the fruits and vegetables regulations to allow the import of fresh apples from China into the United States. the only condition is that apples from areas in China where the Oriental fruit fly is not known to exist would include special rules. Those rules would include registration of … Read more
According to Food & Water Watch, Shanghai Husi Foods Company, a meat plant in China, is implicated in a Chinese food safety scandal. That plant passed USDA audits in 2004 and 2010. This is a problem because last year the USDA decided to let chicken processed in China be exported to the United States. Food … Read more
Petco and Petsmart have announced plans to stop carrying pet treats imported from China after last week’s FDA announcement that they can’t find the cause of 4,800 dog and cat illnesses. The government has been researching this issue for seven years and cannot figure out what is going wrong. Veterinarians and the government are reminding … Read more
The Center for Food Safety (CFS) released a report last week looking at the potential food safety effects of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), currently being negotiated by the U.S. and the European Union. The report, titled “Trade Matters” calls the trade agreement “highly undemocratic and non-transparent.” TTIP follows the trade agreement models of … Read more
In spite of a massive bird flu outbreak, the USDA has approved import of poultry products from South Korea. The final rule grants equivalency status to the Republic of Korea. It becomes effective May 27, 2014. It reads “slaughtered poultry or parts or other products thereof processed in certified Korean establishments will be eligible for export … Read more
Researchers at North Carolina State have verified that an inexpensive instant test for formaldehyde on food has found about 25% of the imported fish purchased at a grocery store chain in Raleigh, North Carolina had unacceptable levels of the chemical. The contaminated fish were imported from China and South Vietnam. Swai, cod, pollack, shrimp, tilapia, … Read more
Last week, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service approved certain Chinese chicken processing facilities to export product to the United States. Their audit says that China’s processed poultry inspection system safety system is equivalent to the U.S. system. The report states that “the Central Competent Authority (CCA) has adequately addressed all previously identified concerns. … Read more
Food & Water Watch has issued a statement saying that six months after they sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack about how the Australian Export Meat Inspection System (AEMIS) led to an increase in import rejections of unsafe Australian meat, the problems have not improved. A new letter has been sent about this … Read more
One of the new rules mandated by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is being put into effect today. the “Information Required in Prior Notice of Imported Food” is now a final rule and is the law of the land. This rule is designed to stop contaminated food at U.S. borders. If a food that … Read more