The following Israeli news alert from the YeshivaWorld on June 1, 2014.
A cook at the Eyal Hotel in Jerusalem has been diagnosed with Hepatitis A. The Israeli health ministry is asking guests who ate breakfast in the hotel between the 18th and 23rd of May to check with their doctor regarding getting vacinated.
The following safety alert from the CPSC, on May 9, 2014.
Princess House, Inc., Taunton, MA- A nationwide direct sales distributor of tableware and house goods, announced today that as a result of internal compliance and independent product testing, it has very recently become aware that a small quantity of its Marissa Tangerine Appetizer Plates, when put into certain food service use, may allow cadmium and lead in the decorative plate decal to escape at levels exceeding U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") and/or California Proposition 65 guidance levels.
Note: Only the Tangerine Appetizer Plates are affected by this voluntary recall and all other Marissa collection tableware are not involved.
Product featured depicts the Marissa Tangerine Appetizer Plate that is the subject of this voluntary recall:
If you are a consumer with one or more of these Plates, you can obtain information about product return and exchange for product of equal or greater value by contacting your sales consultant or hostess or by contacting Princess House directly at (877) 233-1647. You can also review the voluntary recall page on the Princess House website at www.princesshouse.com.
If you are a Princess House consultant or hostess, refer to the mailing provided by the Company or contact the Company directly as outlined above.
The following news is from the Jewish Press on May 22, 2014 .
Chinese owned company Bright Food has purchased Tnuva. Tnuva’s CEO will be Israeli and its chairman of the board will be Chinese, from the Bright Food group. Its center of operations will remain in Israel as well."The bottom line remains: What will happen to Tnuva — and by extension, to the Israeli dairy consumer — if relations between the two countries go sour?"
The following news is from the Jewish Press on May 18, 2014 .
A delegation of officials from the Chinese company Bright Food Company has arrived in Israel to finalize a deal to purchase Tnuva. Tnuva has 66.7% of the Israeli dairy market.
The following news is from the Jewish Press and wsj.com on February 11, 2014 .
Bright Food Group of China is moving closer to a deal to purchase Tnuva, which has 70% of the Israeli dairy market and 14% of the Israeli grocery market. Apax Partners LLP, a British private-equity firm and investment partner Mivtach Shamir Holdings Ltd. purchased a 77% stake in Tnuva for more than $1 billion in 2008. The deal could be for deal goes through it would be for between $2.4 and $2.7 billion
The following news is from the Globes Israel on September 3, 2013.
Bright Foods of China is negotiating to aquire the the Israeli food company Tnuva Food Industries Itd. "Bright Food has over 3,300 retail stores across China and is known in the country for its dairy and White Rabbit candy. It is on a global buying spree and has bought majority holdings in Australia’s Manassen Foods, Synlat Milk in New Zealand, Diva in France, UK cereal maker Weetabix, and Pork producer Smithfield Foods." Bright Foods is a state owned company.
The following news is from the Foodmanufacturing.com on May 19, 2014.
The FDA has reported that spices are a big source of microbial contamination and filth adulterants. Twelve percent of spices that are imported into the United States are contaminated. This can cause foods borne illness, since often spices are added to foods that will not be further cooked.
The following news is from the Foodmanufacturing.com on May 19, 2014.
"Sabra Dipping Company has filed a citizen's petition with the FDA to establish a standard of identity in the United States for hummus under Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations." Sabra wants the FDA to require that a product called hummous must contain chickpeas and no less than 5% tahini.
The following news is from the Barfblog on May 18, 2014.
Food safety law violations carry low penalties in China. "Recently, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang mentioned the melamine incident in the executive meeting. He said, the reason for the tainted milk incident is the small punishments over violation of food safety laws. We should amend the law to give criminals the most severe punishment. However, citizens are not optimistic on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) putting this into practice."
The other issue is corrupt public officials. Meanwhile, the Chinese public does not trust the food.
The following news is from the Reuters and specialtyfood on May 9, 2014.
Vermont Governer Peter Shumlin signed a law mandating the labeling of foods made with GMO's, genetically modified organisms. The Grocery Manufacturers Association is filing a suit in federal court against the state of Vermont to overturn the law. The GMA is supporting the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act, which would require a label on foods containing genetically modified ingredients only if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration determines there is a health or safety risk.
The following news is from the Jewish Press on May 8, 2014.
"The Chief Rabbinate of Israel today (Wednesday) administered the first official certification exam for women who wish to become kashrut supervisors (mashgichot)." "The women taking the test on Wednesday have studied materials and undergone a training program that was designed to meet the standards of supervision by the Chief Rabbinate." "Those women who pass the test on Wednesday will be awarded a certificate enabling them to seek employment as kashrut supervisors."
The following news is from the FoodSafetyTech and FDAon April 29, 2014.
FDA scientists are working on creating DNA barcodes to identify individual fish species, to solve the problem of species substitution. Barcode unique to each species which is identified by DNA testing will be entered into a database. Inspectors with the equipment and know-how can create a barcode for an undown fish and compare it to the known fish in the database. "The agency has trained more than 20 FDA analysts around the country to use that procedure in many of its regional field laboratories and are now performing the analysis on a regular basis." "DNA evidence has already been used by FDA in support of enforcement actions against fish wholesalers found to be substituting one fish for another."
The following news is from the popsci.com on April 25, 2014.
Scientists from ETH Zurich have created tiny magnetic DNA particles that can be encapsulated in silica, and mixed in with olive oil. These particles can store information about the oil's source and quality. This costs about 2 cents a bottle. If these particles are not present in the correct concentration, the oil has been adulterated. The silica coating prevents the DNA from being adsorbed into the body.