A recent study has purportedly found that soybean plants can uptake widely used industrial nanoparticles (NPs) from the soil, raising concerns about potential effects on the food chain and the next generation of crops. Jose Hernandez-Viezcas, et al., “In Situ Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence Mapping and Speciation of CeO2 and ZnO Nanoparticles in Soil Cultivated Soybean (Glycine max),” ACS Nano, February 2013. Researchers apparently used microscopic synchrotron X-ray beams on soybean plants grown in soil contaminated with zinc oxide (ZnO) and cerium dioxide (CeO2) NPs to trace “the potential storage of these NPs or their biotransformed products in edible/reproductive organs of crop plants.” Although x-ray absorption spectroscopy studies evidently did not find intact ZnO NPs within the plant tissues, micro-X-ray absorption near end structure (µ-XANES) data did identify “O-bound Zn, in a form resembling Zn-citrate, which could be an important Zn complex in soybean grains.” The µ-XANES data also reportedly showed…
Category Archives Issue 472
According to media sources, Monster Energy Corp. has announced plans to re-label its energy drinks as beverages regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as opposed to dietary supplements. The company reportedly told industry publication Beverage Digest that it will update product labels to include “Nutritional Facts” rather than “Supplement Facts,” as well as information about the caffeine content. The change will purportedly take effect with the introduction of new products and packaging. “The Company saw no reason to continue being subjected to erroneous and misguided criticism that its Monster Energy drinks are being marketed as dietary substances to avoid FDA regulation,” read a statement that the corporation sent to ABC News. Monster Energy and other energy drink manufacturers have faced increased scrutiny and litigation over claims allegedly linking the products to fatalities in susceptible individuals. Additional details about ongoing investigations by FDA and members of Congress appear in…
An article recently published in The Lancet has apparently concluded that industries promoting so-called “unhealthy commodities” “should have no role in the formation of national or international NCD [non-communicable disease] policy.” Rob Moodie, et al., “Profits and pandemics: prevention of harmful effects of tobacco, alcohol, and ultra-processed food and drink industries,” The Lancet, February 2013. Writing on behalf of The Lancet’s NCD Action Group, researchers examined the purported influence of transnational tobacco, alcohol and food and beverage companies in low- and middle-income countries, as well as “the effectiveness of self-regulation, public-private partnerships, and public regulation models of interaction with these industries.” Focusing on the alleged financial ties between transnational corporations and public-health policymakers, the article ultimately argues that the food and beverage industries “use similar strategies to the tobacco industry to undermine effective public health policies and programs.” In particular, the authors find “no evidence to support the effectiveness or…
In a 76-count indictment, four individuals formerly associated with the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA), which was the source of a nationwide Salmonella outbreak in 2009, have been charged with conspiracy, mail and wire fraud, obstruction of justice and other counts involving the distribution of adulterated or misbranded food. United States v. Parnell, No. 13-12 (M.D. Ga., filed February 15, 2013). A fifth individual employed by PCA has entered a guilty plea to charges filed against him. United States v. Kilgore, No. 13-7 (M.D. Ga., filed February 11, 2013). The outbreak was traced to the Blakely, Georgia, plant owned by defendant Stewart Parnell. The other defendants are Michael Parnell, who was employed as a food broker on behalf of PCA, Samuel Lightsey, the Blakely plant’s operations manager from July 2008 through February 2009, and Mary Wilkerson, who worked in a number of positions from April 2002 through February 2009, including as…
The First Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the dismissal of an attempted appeal from an administrative ruling under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA), agreeing with the district court that the company which allegedly failed to pay all of the required purchase price on four truckloads of produce failed to file an appropriate appeal bond within the prescribed period. The Alphas Co. v. Kopke, No. 12-1581 (1st Cir., decided February 13, 2013). So ruling, the court affirmed the order of an administrative law judge, acting on behalf of the Secretary of Agriculture, awarding the produce supplier $50,025 plus interest. The bond that Alphas filed had “three material defects: it was not filed within the prescribed thirty-day appeal period; it was in an amount less than the amount stipulated; and it did not contain appropriate indemnification covenants.” Looking to the statute, legislative history and other courts for guidance, the First…
Massachusetts lawmakers have proposed a bill (H.B. 2011) to expand access to healthy food choices in vending machines on state property, including “government office buildings, road-side rest stops, state parks and recreation centers, state colleges and universities, and state supported hospitals.” The legislation seeks to set specific nutritional standards for all foods or beverages sold through vending machines located in government buildings or on property owned or managed by the commonwealth. To this end, the proposed bill would require that all beverage items must be one or a combination of the following: (i) water, including carbonated water, without added caloric sweeteners; (ii) coffee or tea without added caloric sweeteners, provided that condiments offered for these beverages have less fat than cream; (iii) fat-free or 1-percent low-fat dairy milk or calcium- and vitamin-D-fortified soymilk with less than 200 calories per container; (iv) 100 percent fruit juice or fruit juice combined with…
The Mississippi House of Representatives recently passed legislation (H.B. 1182) that aims to prohibit food regulation at the local level. The bill in question would reserve to the state legislature the power to regulate consumer incentive items, implement menu and vending machine labeling rules, and set other restrictions on the sale of certain foods and beverages where not preempted by federal law. “If you want to go eat 20 Big Macs, you can eat 20 Big Macs,” said Rep. Greg Holloway (D-Hazlehurst), who reportedly argued that the bill would bar municipalities from making their own laws “willy-nilly.” The state Senate has also passed a similar measure (S.B. 2687), which must be reconciled with the House version before proceeding to the governor. See The Associated Press, February 14, 2013.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the comment periods on two proposed rules related to foodborne illness prevention and produce safety that appeared in the Federal Register on January 16, 2013. In response to a request for a 90-day extension, the agency has increased until May 16, 2013, the comment periods for the proposed rules titled “Current Good Manufacturing Practice and Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food” and ‘‘Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption.” Under the Food Safety Modernization Act, the two new rules would (i) require both foreign and domestic food manufacturers “to develop a formal plan for preventing their food products from causing foodborne illness,” and (ii) establish “science- and risk-based standards for the safe production and harvesting of fruits and vegetables.” Additional details about the rules appear in Issue 466 of this Update. See Federal…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) have filed a petition requesting that the agency amend the standard of identity for milk and 17 other dairy products “to provide for the use of any safe and suitable sweetener as an optional ingredient.” FDA is seeking comments and other information by May 21, 2013. IDFA and NMPF have evidently asked FDA to amend the milk standard of identity to allow optional characterizing flavoring ingredients used in milk— such as chocolate—to be sweetened with any safe and suitable sweetener, including non-nutritive sweeteners such as aspartame. According to IDFA and NMPF, the proposed amendments “would promote more healthful eating practices and reduce childhood obesity by providing for lower-calorie flavored milk products.” In particular, the petitioners claim that lower-calorie flavored milk would assist “in meeting several initiatives aimed at…
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich), who chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, has joined ranking committee member Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and 31 other senators in asking U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk “to quickly address Russia’s new import ban on U.S. beef, poultry and turkey.” According to a February 19, 2013, news release, the ban stems “from Russia’s zero tolerance policy regarding ractopamine, a feed additive for livestock approved by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Codex Alimentarius Commission [CODEX].” In their letter to the trade representative, the senators claim that this “egregious” trade barrier would cost the U.S. economy $600 million annually and amount to an import ban in violation of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement. “The United States must do everything it can to defend its rights in both the WTO and CODEX and prevent non-science-based trading practices from…
