''Source of Listeria Outbreak Linked to Wisconsin Cheesemaker Still Uncertain, Company Says''
"Inspectors haven't yet determined the source of a Midwest listeria outbreak linked to a Wisconsin cheesemaker, the company's president said."
More info
The Pew Charitable Trusts addresses a variety of threats from the nation’s food supply and to the healthfulness of what kids eat at school. Our projects advance science-based policies based on solid research that seek to limit the impact of foodborne illnesses, improve the nutritional quality and safety of food sold and served in U.S. schools, curb the overuse of antibiotics on industrial farms, and assess the risks associated with chemicals added to food and its packaging.
Food Safety News & Resources
''Listeria Illness, Death Tied to Wisconsin-made Crave Brothers Cheese''
"One person has died, a pregnant woman has miscarried and three others have been hospitalized after eating contaminated soft cheese from an award-winning Wisconsin cheese operation, officials said Monday. The death was in Minnesota, while the illnesses — from Listeria monocytogenes — were reported in Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration."
More info''After Death, Minn. Health Dept. Warns of Listeria in Soft Cheese''
A Listeria outbreak linked to a soft, Brie-style cheese has sickened two people in Minnesota. And one of the victims has died.
More info''New regulations promote healthier snack foods in schools''
Jessica Donze Black speaks with Online Athens about the USDA's decision to set nutrition standards on school snack foods and beverages.
More infoNew Standards for School Vending Machines Provide More Than Just Healthy Snacks
While it might take time before we can evaluate the impact of the new standards, which won’t take effect until September 2014, we can look at what we already know to assess them in comparison to the current status quo. The first hint of the new regulation’s potential comes from the Pew Charitable Trusts Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project, showing that children and teens gained less weight over three years if they lived in a state with strong policies on school snacks than if they lived in a state without such standards.
More infoMultistate Foodborne Illness Outbreaks
In January 2011, President Barack Obama signed the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) into law, signaling the first major update to our nation’s food safety oversight framework since the Great Depression. Despite widespread support for the legislation and its implementation, the Obama administration still has not issued all of the proposed rules under FSMA.
More info''FDA Detains Pomegranate Seeds From Turkey Tied to Hepatitis Outbreak''
Food and Drug Administration officials say they will detain shipments of pomegranate seeds imported from Turkey after an investigation identified the fruit as a common link in an outbreak of acute hepatitis A that has sickened nearly 130 people in the U.S.
More infoPew Commends Sen. Mikulski on Food Safety Funding, Grants for School Kitchen Improvements
The Pew Charitable Trusts applauds Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) for her efforts to strengthen food safety protections under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, and provide grant funding to help school cafeterias across the nation upgrade their equipment to serve healthy, appealing meals to millions of school children. Funding for both programs was included in a larger bill approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday.
More info''Congress Shouldn't Weaken Food Safety Laws''
"Being a Minnesotan, Jeff Almer searched for a polite term to describe how he feels about a congressional push to roll back the new food safety laws his family fought for when his elderly mother died after eating salmonella-laced peanut butter in late 2008."
More info''What the New USDA Rules for Healthier School Snacks Mean for Schools''
Jessica Donze Black, director of the Kids' Safe and Healthful Foods project, discusses the USDA's decision to finalize interim rules for snack foods and beverages sold in schools.
More info
