The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued “COVID-19 and food safety: guidance for food businesses,” which provides information on the risks of transmission of COVID-19 in the food and beverage industry. “It is highly unlikely that people can contract COVID-19 from food or food packaging,” the guidance states. “Coronaviruses cannot multiply in food; they need an animal or human host to multiply.” Instead, it urges industry to “reinforce personal hygiene measures and provide refresher training on food hygiene principles to eliminate or reduce the risk of food surfaces and food packaging materials becoming contaminated with the virus from food workers.” The guidance provides specifics on hygiene standards, such as open food displays and the use of disposable gloves. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has also provided several resources for food and beverage companies, including a list of frequently asked questions. The website features regularly updated questions on a number…
Category Archives Europe
France's agriculture minister has reportedly announced that the country will prohibit the mass culling of male chicks shortly after they hatch and ban the castration of piglets without anesthesia in an effort to support animal welfare. The minister indicated his intention to have the regulations take effect by the end of 2021. Germany previously banned the practice, but a court invalidated the law until a method for determining the sex of an embryo in the egg can be developed.
The Portman Group, the U.K. alcohol industry's self-regulatory authority, has upheld a complaint against Trinchero Family Estates for its Ménage à Trois Midnight wine. Zenith Global brought a complaint arguing that the wine's name and marketing copy may breach the code by creating links between the product and sexual activity or sexual success. The panel agreed, finding that the text on the label—including "savour the pleasures of the dark"—did not dispel the sexual connotations of the Ménage à Trois name, which purportedly refers to the wine's blend of three varietals. “In this case, the Panel urged the producer to avoid linking the sexual meaning of the name to the product and remove the text description on the bottle which did this," the panel's chair commented in a press release. "The Panel’s decision is a reminder to all producers that care must be taken when marketing a product to ensure that…
A regulatory committee of the European Union has reportedly voted to prohibit the use of chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos-methyl. Member countries voted to withdraw authorization for the insecticide after January 31, 2020, after which companies will have three months to dispose of their stocks of chlorpyrifos. The vote follows an August 2019 determination by the European Food Safety Authority finding that chlorpyrifos has "no safe exposure level."
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a scientific opinion on animal welfare considerations during the slaughter of poultry for food. The opinion provides a "comprehensive overview" of "the entire slaughter process from arrival and unloading of birds through stunning to bleeding and killing." The opinion also identifies hazards that "give rise to welfare issues—such as pain, thirst, hunger or restricted movement—and proposes preventive and corrective measures where possible." Many of the identified hazards relate to the lack of training in personnel; the "advice highlights the importance of staff being adequately trained in the different phases of slaughter and for clear identification of roles and responsibilities." The press release notes that EFSA will publish further opinions on animal welfare in slaughter for pigs, cattle and other species in 2020.
The Portman Group, a U.K. alcohol industry self-regulatory group, has upheld a complaint against the Bearded Brewery for the name of its high-alcohol cider, Suicyder. A member of the public complained about the beverage name's reference to suicide, calling Suicyder "clearly irresponsible" because it purportedly targets young men—"the group at highest risk of suicide"—and uses associated iconography, such as the tagline "juice from the noose." The company asserted that the "name of the cider was based on a wordplay with the intention being to indicate the strength of the alcohol content" and explained that the tagline was a reference to the founders' previous work with the Forestry Commission that required them to use a noose to dismantle unsafe trees. The panel was unpersuaded by tagline explanation, noting that "a consumer would have to understand this inside knowledge to displace the main connotation portrayed by the product name and imagery on…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against The Cornish Rum Co. against its ads marketing Dead Man's Fingers Hemp Rum. The complainant asserted that two Instagram posts and an ad in a trade magazine used language linking the hemp-infused rum to cannabis, including "Delicious mixed with coke or ginger ale—serve chilled, man. Coming to a joint near you." Another Instagram post featured an image of an outdoor ad reading "Warning: Our Hemp Rum May Cause the Munchies" along with "an image of a skull which was smoking and wearing a hat with a cannabis leaf print." The trade magazine ad included the text "Dealers Wanted." ASA dismissed the portion of the complaint arguing that the ad was intended to appeal to an audience under 18, finding that the images "were not references associated with youth culture and that overall the colours and imagery used gave each…
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched a public consultation on the risks associated with consuming aflatoxins, mycotoxins produced by two species of Aspergillus that “are known to be genotoxic (capable of damaging DNA) and carcinogenic.” Most human exposure to aflatoxins comes from contaminated grains and derived products, although they can also be found in milk, according to the notice. Comments will be accepted until November 15, 2019.
Denmark has reportedly passed a law that will ban per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from cardboard and paper used for food packaging. "These substances represent such a health problem that we can no longer wait for the EU," Denmark's food minister is quoted as saying. Recycled paper may continue to be used if the PFAS compounds are separated from food with a barrier. PFAS compounds have come under scrutiny in both the United States and Europe as agencies research the effects of consuming the substances.
Illinois has passed a law requiring businesses to indicate on food labels whether a product contains sesame. The amended law deems a food misbranded if "it contains sesame, is offered for sale in package form but not for immediate consumption, and the label does not include sesame." The state representative who sponsored the legislation told the NPR affiliate that his daughter is allergic to sesame and has received incorrect answers when inquiring about the ingredient at restaurants. “If they see us do it, the hope is that everyone does it,” he reportedly told WILL. “I hope that the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)] and other states will follow suit." FDA and the U.K. Food Standards Agency have opened investigations into the prevalence of sesame as an allergen in prepared food products, while Canada, the European Union, Australia and Israel have reportedly enacted regulations requiring sesame labeling.
