Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published a study identifying perchlorate in 15 brands of powdered infant formula (PIF), which included products made from cow’s milk with lactose; cow’s milk without lactose; soy milk; and synthetic amino acids (elemental). Joshua G. Schier, “Perchlorate Exposure From Infant Formula and Comparisons With the Perchlorate Reference Dose,” Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, March 18, 2009. The study authors purportedly found that some PIF samples exceeded the daily reference dose of 0.7 µg/kg per day set by the Environmental Protection Agency. More than one half of the formulas would exceed the reference dose when reconstituted with drinking water contaminated with 4 µg/l of perchlorate, according to the study. The CDC researchers have reportedly claimed that the two brands with the highest perchlorate levels comprise approximately 87 percent of the powdered milk market in the United States. Scientists…
The U.S. Food Policy blog has posted a response to the announcement that Disney Food, Health & Beauty would begin marketing a line of “farm fresh” eggs branded with a rotating cast of cartoon characters. According to Disney Food, the available products will include Large, Extra Large, 18-pack Large, Disney Cage Free, and Disney Organic eggs, all produced by hens raised without hormones, steroids or antibiotics and fed Eggland’s Best patented feed containing “healthy grains, canola oil, and an all-natural supplement of rice bran, alfalfa, sea kelp, and vitamin E.” But the marketing plan has drawn criticism from one blog contributor, who blamed the egg supplier for furthering “the agrarian myth that people’s food is coming from an idealistic farm with a red barn” and who questioned the motives behind Disney’s foray into food marketing. “I side with Marion Nestle on the point that kids don’t need special ‘kid-friendly’ foods…
Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) has launched a letter-writing initiative to dissuade Burger King from using a “highly sexualized” television commercial to advertise its 99-cent SpongeBob Kids Meal. According to CCFC, the ad features Burger King’s mascot “singing a remix of Sir Mix-A-Lot’s 1990 hit song, ‘Baby Got Back,’ with the new lyrics, ‘I like square butts and I cannot lie,” intercut with images of Nickelodeon’s popular cartoon character dancing on a TV screen in the background. The consumer watchdog has also criticized Burger King for airing the commercial during the NCAA basketball finals. “It’s bad enough when companies use a beloved media character like SpongeBob to promote junk food to children, but it’s utterly reprehensible when that character simultaneously promotes objectified, sexualized images of women,” CCFC Director Susan Linn was quoted as saying. “That Burger King and Nickelodeon would sell kids meals by associating a beloved, male character…
The Farm Foundation recently hosted a public forum titled “The Future of Food Safety Regulation” to discuss agricultural, food and rural policies designed to revamp the current regulatory system. Held April 7, 2009, at the National Press Club, the forum featured a panel of experts that included Jim Hodges of the American Meat Institute, Carol Tucker Foreman of the Consumer Federation of America’s Food Policy Institute; Scott Horsfall of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement; and Margaret Glavin, an independent consultant and former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official. Glavin reportedly identified the global food market as “the single biggest challenge” facing U.S. agencies and recommended modernizing laws to promote a uniform approach to food safety. Noting the high cost of legislative proposals that would create one umbrella agency, Glavin instead argued for increased FDA funding and the authority to enforce import requirements and conduct overseas inspections. “Our regulations and…
Investigative reporter Andrew Schneider has published an item on his blog about “popcorn lung” problems faced by workers in other industries, such as candy manufacturing, exposed to diacetyl, a butter-flavoring chemical. According to Schneider, five patients diagnosed with the sometimes-fatal lung disease worked at a now closed Brach’s candy plant in Chicago. While federal occupational health and safety inspectors cannot investigate conditions in a closed facility, International Brotherhood of Teamster’s officials are reportedly calling on them to inspect candy plants in Tennessee. The union is apparently concerned that workers outside the popcorn industry are also being exposed to disabling levels of diacetyl and are not aware of it. Schneider also reports that a trial against flavoring manufacturers began on April 6, 2009, for claims involving a woman who allegedly developed bronchiolitis obliterans while working at a plant that produced popular brands of popcorn. A physician who was expected to be…
A federal court in California has approved the settlement of class claims against Wendy’s International, Inc. involving its use of trans fats in fried food products. Yoo v. Wendy’s Int’l, Inc., No. 07-04515 (C.D. Cal., filed March 13, 2009). In its revised order and final judgment, the court overruled objections to the settlement, certified a nationwide settlement class and dismissed the complaint with prejudice. The defendant was ordered to add $450,000 plus interest to the $1.8 million already in an escrow account to be divided equally among the American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, American Dietetic Association, and American Heart Association. The court also ordered the defendant to ensure that its fried foods are cooked in oil containing a level of trans fat per serving that “can be represented as 0 grams of trans fat,” under Food and Drug Administration regulations. Wendy’s was further ordered to “pay for and subject its…
KFC U.S. Properties, Inc. has filed a lawsuit in federal court against the company that allegedly supplied defective food containers for the sale of Popcorn Chicken® to KFC customers; the containers apparently burst into flames when the product is reheated in a microwave. KFC U.S. Props., Inc. v. Paris Packaging, Inc., No. 09-00249 (W.D. Ky., filed April 3, 2009). According to the complaint, in February 2009, the defendant began using an ink with high carbon content for the graphics printed on the containers. After receiving customer complaints, KFC tested the containers and established that they “spontaneously combusted in a microwave within 13-20 seconds of reheating.” While no personal injuries have been alleged, the company is seeking damages in excess of $75,000 for breach of contract.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that U.S. marshals executed an inspection warrant at Westco Fruit and Nuts, Inc., in Irvington, New Jersey, after the company refused to recall its peanut products or provide access to distribution documents in the wake of the Salmonella outbreak involving peanuts from the Peanut Corp. of America (PCA). An FDA spokesperson said, “FDA’s enforcement action against Westco Fruit and Nuts is an appropriate step toward removing potentially harmful products from the marketplace, especially when, as in this case, a company is unwilling to share information FDA needs to ensure food safety. FDA uses all appropriate legal means necessary to obtain information and fully investigate firms or individuals who put the health of consumers at risk.” Apparently, Westco purchased oil-roasted and salted peanuts from PCA in November and December 2008. It sold them in various sizes and packages and used them as an…
The International Trade Commission (ITC) has reportedly ruled that Chinese manufacturers and U.S. distributors did not infringe the sucralose patents owned by Tate & Lyle. The ITC’s April 6, 2009, ruling affirms an administrative judge’s September 2008 preliminary ruling about the sweetener patents. More details about the case appear in issue 276 of this Update. According to a news source, Tate & Lyle is reviewing the latest determination and will decide whether appeals through the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals are feasible. Numerous sucralose competitors are apparently ready to try to break what has been characterized as Tate & Lyle’s near monopoly of the global $1.3 billion sucralose market. The company’s president called the ruling a disappointment, but, referring to the quality of its product and the efficiency of its manufacturing processes, was quoted as saying, “intellectual property is just one of the many components which define Tate & Lyle’s…
Companies that produce honey, mushroom, garlic, and crawfish products have filed a putative class action against major insurance companies and the U.S. government, alleging that the negligent issuance of customs surety bonds allowed the sale of massive quantities of competing, lower-cost Chinese products. Sioux Honey Ass’n v. Hartford Fire Ins. Co., No. 09-00141 (Ct. Int’l Trade, filed April 7, 2009). Filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade, the lawsuit claims that for eight years, insurers issued hundreds of the bonds to “thinly capitalized” and inexperienced shippers, guaranteeing the payment of any anti-dumping duties the government might decide were owed by U.S. importers for specific Chinese goods. The plaintiffs contend that the insurers failed to follow underwriting standards and thus issued bonds to importers posing an unacceptable risk of default. Had the insurers not issued the bonds to importers, “little if any of the imports that were secured by those bonds…
