Food Safety

USDA Takes Steps to Reduce Salmonella in Poultry

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The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) estimates that “Salmonella bacteria cause 1.35 million human infections and 26,500 hospitalizations in the United States every year.  Of those infections, more than 23 percent are attributed to poultry consumption. Foodborne illness can have a devastating impact, both personally and financially, on people’s lives, the cost of which …

Food Safety

The Shoppers Guide to Pesticides in Produce

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The Shoppers Guide to Pesticides in Produce is a publication that should be of interest to anyone in the food industry.  Note that it is produced by the EWG – Environmental Working Group which is a non-profit environmental health organization.  It contains testing data on 46,569 samples of non-organic fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables …

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Don’t Miss the Millennial Market

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Millennials, also known as Generation “Y” are born between the early 1980’s and the mid 1990’s although the exact dates can vary depending on the source of information.  As of 2021, they made up the largest generational group in the United States, representing approximately 27% of the total population according to the U.S. Census Bureau …

Food Safety

Ready for a FDA or USDA Inspection? AFFI’s New Toolkit Provides Detailed Guidance

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The latest message from Alison Bodor, CEO of AFFI (the American Frozen Food Institute) provides updates on what’s happening in the FDA including changes that are important to all who produce and sell frozen foods as noted in the following report: FDA Structural Reform: AFFI has been part of a small and diverse coalition of …

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Food Processing and AI – We’ve Only Scratched the Surface

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Since December last year we’ve heard a lot about AI – artificial intelligence and in particular OpenAi’s ChatGPT.  In fact, just last week, Microsoft released some beta-testing of its new AI powered Bing search engine which is powered by OpenAi’s ChatGPT and the results were stunning.  Over one million people signed up for the beta-testing …

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ChatGPT check on Plant Based Foods

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This month, just for fun I decided to enlist the help of AI (artificial intelligence) to write about what’s happening in the plant-based meat category, (often called “fake meat”), so I logged onto chat.openai.com.  Was AI as up-to-date on the market info as those of us humans who work at Noon International? A little background…according …

Food Safety

Sesame – A New Food Allergen That Must Be Declared by Federal Law

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You may already be familiar with the 8 foods that must be declared as major food allergens:  1) milk, 2) eggs, 3) fish (such as bass, flounder, cod), 4) crustacean shellfish such as crab, lobster, shrimp, 5) tree nuts such as almonds, walnuts, pecans, 6) peanuts, 7) wheat, and 8) soybean.  Now, effective January 1, …

Food Safety

New Era of Smarter Food Safety Uses Tech-Enabled Traceability

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FDA’s New Era of Smarter Food Safety Four Core Elements Just as companies such as Yum! Brands, Inc and others are using technology to improve and advance their businesses, the FDA’s new approach to food safety, known as the New Era of Smarter Food Safety leverages technology and other tools to create a safer, more …

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Expanding Technology to Increase Digital Sales Spells Success for Yum! Brands, Inc.

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Almost everyone enjoys the food that comes from a Yum! Brand franchise or subsidiary.  Who doesn’t like Kentucky Fried Chicken or a piping hot pizza from Pizza Hut? Today, Yum! Brands, Inc. (headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky), operates a system of over 53,000 restaurants in 155 countries and territories throughout the world under the brands KFC …

Food Safety

FDA Announces the Final Rule for Food Traceability Under FSMA

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Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a final rule on food traceability designed to facilitate faster identification and rapid removal of potentially contaminated food from the market, resulting in fewer foodborne illnesses and/or deaths. Foods subject to the final rule requirements appear on the Food Traceability List (FTL). The FTL includes fresh cut fruits …

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Westcoast Container Back-Up is Over But Still, Lots of Problems

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In January this year, the number of ships in line waiting to unload at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach was 109 stretching 60 miles into the Pacific.  This week, it dropped to just four according to the Wall Street Journal. In pre-Covid times the queue was usually zero to one container ships …