Food Safety

The BVA has regularly highlighted the dearth of vets

Brexit export certificates cost over £26m this year

By Rod Addy

Export health certification cost over £26m from January to June this year, claims the food industry's sanitary & phytosanitary (SPS) certification working group, which wants food business operators to support e-certification trials.

Johnson: 'Testing spend is coming under pressure and at the same time risk is increasing'

Food safety opinion

How can I cut food testing costs?

By Alison Johnson

Price pressures and increasing risk tempted us to choose between cost saving and managing risk.

Salmonella has dogged the food industry over the past few months. iStock credit Manjurul

Digital feature: long read

Food safety trends

By Michelle Perrett

The past two years have brought rapid and relentless change to the food chain and this shows no signs of slackening.

Ensuring compliance across a complex supply chain is tough at the best of times

Experts from Tesco and McCormick tackle compliance

By Rod Addy

Experts from Tesco and global herbs and spices supplier McCormick & Company will form part of a panel tackling traceability and compliance in a volatile market in our free webinar on 25 May.

Acrylamide can be found in products such as crisps, chips and cakes. iStock credit piotr_malczyk

Be aware of EU acrylamide changes

By Mark Hughes

The EU recently added many more products to its acrylamide monitoring system, broadening the list of baked goods and including pita and specialty breads, pancakes, tortillas, churros, doughnuts and croissants.

You have until 26 May to get your CBD products on the FSA's CBD product list

Last chance to register CBD products

By Gwen Ridler

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued a final call for food and drink products containing cannabidiol (CBD) to be added to the public list.

The ECDC will investigate any links between raw materials and the ongoing salmonella outbreak

Salmonella outbreak: potential link to raw materials

By Gwen Ridler

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is to investigate a potential link between contaminated raw material and the multi-country outbreak of salmonella connected to Ferrero’s Belgian chocolate factory.

An outbreak of listeria has been linked to smoked fish

Ongoing listeria outbreak linked to smoked fish

By Gwen Ridler

An ongoing outbreak of listeria in the UK has been linked to smoked fish, according to an investigation led by the UK Health Security Agency, Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland.

Johnson: 'Ukraine accounts for 17% of the globally exported corn'

Food Safety opinion

Food fraud and the Ukraine war

By Alison Johnson

The impact of the conflict in Ukraine has been well covered in the media, but what is the likely impact of this global supply disruption on food fraud and food authenticity?

Intakes of added and free sugar should stay as low as possible, according to EFSA

Sugar intake levels in line with current recommendations

By Gwen Ridler

Intakes of added and free sugar should be as low as possible – in line with current recommendations – for a nutritionally adequate diet, according to a new report from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

According to the ISC, demand for stevia continues to grow. iStock credit: HandmadePictures

Framework for steviol glycoside production approved

By Rod Addy

International food safety body Codex Alimentarius has approved a framework outlining four safe ways of producing steviol glycosides, enabling greater access to stevia products across the globe.

X-rays rule the roost in detection tech, but metal detectors still have their place

Detection and inspection feature

Advances and developments in detection and inspection technology

By Gwen Ridler

In the world of detection and inspection, the latest advances in food safety technology have been propelled by a need to not only save space and money, but also larger goals of becoming more sustainable and offering more comprehensive coverage for discovering...

Miles outlined five active food fraud investigations

Food Crime Unit closes in on fraudsters

By Rod Addy

The Food Standards Agency's (FSA's) National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) is making progress on food fraud investigations, with sentencing following its first successful conviction due to take place this month.

The Food Standards Agency said the regulatory system needed to adapt to a digital world

FSA: recovery dominated by COVID-19

By Michelle Perrett

The immediate future is dominated by recovery from COVID-19, but food inspections cannot be delayed 'indefinitely', Food Standards Agency (FSA) chief executive Emily Miles has said.

The report urges the food industry to act with urgency to tackle global environmental issues

What has the food industry achieved on sustainability?

By Rod Addy

Food industry leaders have united to tackle sustainability, health and food safety over the past year, despite significant challenges, but to make more progress they should be their 'own biggest critics'.

All herbs and spices are not of the same quality, McCormick's Chris Jinks has warned. iStock credit: AlexRaths

McCormick warns of herbs and spices adulteration

By Michelle Perrett

McCormick & Company, the US-based ingredients supplier, has called on manufacturers in the herb and spice industry to check their businesses for fraudulent practices following the publication of an EU report.

The FSA and UKRI have funded six projects bringing togetherresearchers and the public to investigate food standards and safety

FSA helps fund citizen science research projects

By Gwen Ridler

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) have awarded £200,000 to fund six projects uniting the public and researchers to investigate food standards and safety challenges.

The GFSI has launched a new benchmark for food safety auditors

GFSI launches new benchmark for food safety auditors

By Gwen Ridler

The ‘first-ever’ set of Benchmarking Requirements for food safety auditor Professional Recognition Bodies has been launched by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) in a bid to raise the profile of the profession and attract and retain talent.

Irradiation could be used to tackle bacteria that cause food poisoning

Opinion

Irradiation to tackle foodborne bacteria

By Gwen Ridler

Alison Johnson, managing director at Food Forensics, discusses the use of irradiation in the fight against salmonella, campylobacter and E.coli.

This year's Food Safety Briefing will feature tips on allergens, audits, HACCP planning and horizon scanning

Food Safety Briefing airs tomorrow

By Rod Addy

Food Safety Briefing: Weak Links in The Chain, Food Manufacture's annual free food safety webinar, airs tomorrow at 3pm UK time on 6 October.

Food safety systems at factory level have been tested like never before

Food Manufacture Webinar

Food Safety: Weak Links in The Chain

By Rod Addy

Allergen management, effective management of food industry audits, horizon scanning tools and robust hazard analysis critical control points (HACCP) systems will all be addressed in a free Food Manufacture webinar held on 6 October.

The CO2 shortage threatens to hamper supplies of the gas for poultry stunning pre-slaughter

NEWS ANALYSIS

CO2 shortage problems not over yet - what now?

By Rod Addy

The shortage of food-grade CO2 has not been fully solved, despite the Government claiming a coup in terms of brokering a deal to restart its production. We explore the problems that remain and the future implications for the food industry.

The webinar will cover areas including managing audits efficiently and HACCP planning

Food Manufacture webinar

Food Safety Briefing: Weak Links in The Chain 6 October

By Rod Addy

Food Manufacture is running its usual free annual Food Safety Briefing on 6 October online from 3pm to 4.30pm, featuring experts tackling topics ranging from allergens to ensuring robust HACCP plans and audits.

Reinders: 'a company registering a single product under Novel Food guidelines would need to invest between €350,000-€500,000'

CBD opinion

Hemp food firm wants quality marks, not Novel Food approval

By Mark Reinders

Driving CBD food producers down the Novel Foods route is unnecessary and expensive, argues Mark Reinders, HempFlax boss and former president of the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) in this opinion piece.

The project aims to track how pathogens and AMR spread by analysing food, environment and health factors

£19.2m food safety project to track foodborne pathogens

By Rod Addy

Food safety across the food chain just got a boost as the Government announced £19.2m funding for a three-year surveillance project tracking UK foodborne pathogens and antimicrobial resistant (AMR) microbes.

A total of 36% of consumers surveyed said they checked food labelling for allergens or ingredients exacerbating intolerances

Allergen information needs more work, says GS1 UK

By Rod Addy

Food allergy-stricken Brits need more transparent information about allergens in foods, with one in six unable to identify any in common food groups and 62% too embarrassed to ask about ingredients when eating out.