According to the latest California Pesticide Residue Monitoring Annual Report from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), 97 percent of fresh produce samples collected across the state contain no pesticide residues exceeding health-protective thresholds set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

A recent study examined the extent of gluten migration from different biodegradable food contact materials into a variety of liquid and solid foods to provide a more comprehensive basis for assessing the risk of exposure for wheat allergy and celiac disease patients.

A study has identified significant deficiencies in existing quantitative risk assessment models for Listeria monocytogenes on produce, such as failure to consider important contamination factors in primary production, among other gaps.

Thursday morning at the 2024 Food Safety Summit (FSS), top U.S. food safety regulators and public health officials took the stage for an interactive Town Hall discussion.

The Keynote presentation at the 2024 Food Safety Summit (FSS), titled, “Being Right is Not Enough: Leading Food Safety in a Corporate and Global Environment,” took place on Wednesday morning, presented by Mary Weaver Gertz, Chief Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA) Officer at Yum! Brands Inc.

FDA recently revealed results of a survey that found HPAI H5N1 genetic material in one in five retail milk samples; additional testing is required to understand the possible presence and risk of intact, infectious virus. Supported by other studies showing the efficacy of pasteurization against HPAI, FDA maintains its position that the U.S. milk supply is safe.

A total of 313 food product recall announcements were issued in 2023 by FDA and USDA, which the U.S. Public Interest Research Groups (PIRG) Education Fund analyzed in its Food for Thought 2024 report to identify recall trends. 

As the EU is considering a ban on bisphenol A (BPA) and its analogues in food packaging based on the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) recent lowering of its tolerable daily intake (TDI) for the chemical, an international group of academic experts has penned their support for EFSA’s nontraditional risk assessment behind the new BPA TDI, and call on other regulatory agencies around the globe to modernize their risk assessment approaches of endocrine-disrupting chemicals.

This article discusses the recent wave of state bills on food additives that have emerged following the California Food Safety Act, FDA’s activities in an effort to get ahead of an inconsistent patchwork of legislation, and criticisms about these bills voiced by legislators, regulators, and industry stakeholders.

In light of recently confirmed cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in U.S. dairy cows and now in one person, James (Jim) Jones, FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods revealed that HPAI has become the “highest priority” within the agency’s Human Foods Program, and that the agency has set up a set up a dedicated Incident Management Team (IMT) to respond to the developing threat.