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Food News


THIS SECTION IS FOR NEWS AND INTERESTING STORIES RELATED TO FOOD, NUTRITION AND FOOD PROCESSING. THEY ARE NOT NECESSARILY RELATED TO KOSHER BUT MAY BE OF INTEREST TO THE KOSHER CONSUMER, MANUFACTURER OR MASHGIACH.

Newer news

Woman Dies From Allergic Reaction to Dairy Ice Cream at Meat Restaurant

April 15, 2021 - from Hamodia:

"A 23-year-old woman with a milk allergy died on Wednesday night after she was served dairy ice cream at a kosher meat restaurant in northern Israel."

"Police opened an investigation into the incident, shutting down the restaurant in Rosh Pinah and detaining five employees, including the owner and the chef, on suspicion of negligent homicide. The suspects were released to house arrest after law enforcement determined that they had not acted intentionally."

"The victim was later identified as Osher Deri, a”h, from the nearby town of Chatzor Haglilit."

"Deri was rushed to Tzfas’s Ziv Medical Center when she started feeling unwell after eating her dessert. Doctors were forced to declare her death shortly upon her arrival."

"An initial investigation found that the victim had ordered ice cream, assuming it was pareve as the restaurant would not serve dairy."

"The chef said that he had earlier noticed that they were out of ice cream and ordered a co-worker to run to the store and purchase more ice cream. However, the employee mistakenly bought dairy ice cream."

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1165

Epicure Recalls Glass Prep Bowls Due to Laceration Hazard

April 7, 2021 - from CPSC :

Epicure Prep Bowls (Set of Four) have been recalled because the tempered glass bowl can break or shatter during use, posing a laceration hazard.

This recall involves Epicure Prep Bowls (Set of Four). Epicure and the product code “1004242” are printed on the outside bottom of the box. The clear glass bowls have plastic purple lids. Epicure is stamped on the bowls and the lids, and each bowl is marked with the following measurements: “50 ml,” “125ml,” “175ml,” “1/4 cup,” “1/2 cup,” and “3/4 cup.”

The firm has received six reports of the prep bowls breaking or shattering in the United States and 35 reports in Canada, including one report of a minor cut on the finger.

Sold At: Epicure independent consultants nationwide between May 2020 and September 2020 for about $23.

Consumer Contact: Epicure toll-free at 855-668-5909 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, email at customerexperience@epicure.com or online at www.epicure.com and click on “Product Updates” at the bottom of the webpage for more information.

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1164

Danger of Shlissel Challah?

An old article but still relevant from May 3, 2019 from the Matzav.com:

"As is well known, there is a minhag to make shlissel challah for the Shabbos after Pesach. Shlissel challahs are best known as a segulah for parnassah, although there are other several reasons for baking a challah with a key in it. However, some have raised health concerns regarding this minhag. Keys have been found to leave behind unsafe amounts of lead, leading some to suggest that the practice of placing keys in challahs in making shlissel challah may present a danger."

"Brass is a soft metal, so lead is added to give keys more strength. Some keys have a silver-colored nickel coating over top the brass, but this wears away. Sucking on car keys is dangerous. Even handling car keys can leave lead on one’s hands. Not all keys are brass; some are aluminum and are lighter weight."

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1163

Gluten-Free Products: What You Need to Know about International Requirements

March 30, 2021 from the Food Safety News

"Meeting international demand for gluten-free products makes sound business sense, but deciphering the hodgepodge of regulations in multiple regions can be challenging. There is no single international regulation or threshold for gluten in gluten-free products, and different countries have adopted their own standards. For example, in the U.S., the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires foods labeled as gluten-free to contain less than 20 ppm of unintentionally added gluten. In Japan, the standard is 10 ppm, while Chile has adopted an extremely stringent threshold of 1 ppm, and Australia requires the presence of gluten to be “non-detectable.” Meanwhile, some smaller countries don’t have any regulations for gluten-free products, and labeling requirements in many developing nations have taken a back seat to securing a food supply for hungry populations."

"In addition to varying labeling requirements, different countries have adopted contradictory stances on fermented and hydrolyzed products. For example, FDA recently concluded that no available testing methods can guarantee that fermented and hydrolyzed products are gluten-free. As a result, to be labeled gluten-free, these products must use starting materials that do not exceed the 20-ppm threshold. By contrast, the UK regulation follows the Codex Alimentarius guidance that a result of less than 20 ppm in the finished product, using an R5 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method, is sufficient to label a fermented or hydrolyzed product as gluten-free, even when produced from wheat, rye, or barley."

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1162

Court denies Tofurky appeal to Missouri meat label law

March 31, 2021 from FoodDive:

"The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the Missouri law that bans the use of the term "meat" for marketing products that do not come from livestock or poultry. The ruling supports a 2019 District Court ruling denying the request for a preliminary injunction by Tofurky, the Good Food Institute, Animal Legal Defense Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri.


Tofurky sues Louisiana over plant-based meat labeling law

October 12, 2019 FoodDive:

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1099

Shabbos Alert - Blueshine bulk facial tissues

March 5, 2021 - from a reader:

Blueshine bulk facial tissues should NOT be used on Shabbos. The tissues are connected to each other and rip upon pulling out from the box. Remove them slowly and you will see that every other tissue is connected.
This product has sold at Bingo.

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1153

A Brexit Passover food shortage is forcing the Jews of Ireland and Northern Ireland to work together

March 24, 2021 from the JTA

"Since 2016, it has become a staple of British and Irish political analysis to say that the tangled Brexit trade arrangements will push Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland closer together. Ultimately, it could lead to a United Ireland, some analysts say."

"his year, in the run-up to Passover, the two countries’ Jewish communities are showing one unusual sign of closer collaboration between the countries. Thanks to a Passover food shortage brought on in part by the post-Brexit trade agreement signed three months ago, holiday supplies are being closely coordinated between Dublin and Belfast, and Belfast’s Jews are traveling down to Dublin to collect products like matzah for Passover."

"Great Britain is normally the main supplier of kosher and kosher for Passover products for both the Irish and Northern Irish Jewish communities. But as part of the U.K.’s withdrawal from the European Union, new regulatory checks have been introduced on trade between Britain and the E.U., raising the cost of exporting British products into members of the European single market, like Ireland."

"Since it is part of the U.K., one would expect Northern Ireland to have maintained its ability to freely procure supplies from England and elsewhere. But under the so-called “Northern Ireland Protocol,” part of the Brexit agreement, Northern Ireland is to remain within the E.U.’s single market for goods as part of an attempt to keep the border between it and the Republic of Ireland open."

"So the Jews of Belfast have run into the same hurdles as their coreligionists to the south."

"London has introduced a temporary grace period in an attempt to ease disruptions by temporarily suspending some checks on imports into Northern Ireland, but the underlying difficulties have remained."

"The fortunes of the Belfast and Dublin Jewish communities have diverged in recent years. After decades of emigration, Belfast’s community has shrunk to below 100 members, the vast majority of whom are elderly.

"Across the border, Dublin’s Jews have benefitted from an influx of young Jews coming to work in the republic’s booming technology sector. For the first time since the 1950s, when Ireland was an unlikely source of kosher meat imports to Israel, the community is growing again. Current estimates place the number of Jews in Dublin at around 2,000."

"While Jewish communities continue to shrink and consolidate across the U.K. as populations condense into cities such as London and Manchester, cooperation might seem inevitable."

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1159

PNHC, LLC d/b/a Heal the World Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall of Heal the World Hand Sanitizer Packaged in 9.6 Ounce Bottles Because They Resemble Small Water Bottles

March 16, 2021 - from FDA:

PNHC, LLC, d/b/a Heal the World, is voluntarily recalling all lots of Heal the World hand sanitizer packaged in 9.6 fl. oz containers to the consumer level. The products are being recalled because they resemble 9.6ounce water bottles. The recall does not affect any other Hand Sanitizer products from PNHC, LLC and/or Heal the World.

Product

Size

NDC

Heal the World Hand Sanitizer 9.6 FL. OZ (285 mL) 73333-285-01

Lot Nos. SAA21, SAA24, SAA27, SAA22, SAA23, SAA29, SAA26, SAA28, SAA25, SAA32, SAA55, SAA56, SAA44, SAA60.

Consumers with questions regarding this recall can contact PNHC, LLC at 813-434-0741 from 9:00 am- 5:00 pm EST, Monday through Friday. Consumers should contact their physician or healthcare provider if they have experienced any problems that may be related to using this product.

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1158

Israel: Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef to Avichai Mandelblit: 'Freeze ruling allowing hametz in hospitals'

March 10, 2021 - from Arutz 7 :

"Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef sent a letter to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, requesting that he act to delay the implementation of a ruling which would force Israeli hospitals to allow hametz (leavened products) to be brought in over Passover."

"In his letter, Rabbi Yosef requested to delay the implementation of the ruling by ten months, so as to allow the Knesset to enact legislation that will prevent offense to the Passover-observant public."

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1156

Lifetime Products Recalls 6-Foot Seminar Tables Due to Injury Risk

March 10, 2021 - from CPSC :

Lifetime Products 6-foot Seminar Tables has been recalled because The brace arms can fail to lock the table legs into place and the table can collapse, posing an injury risk to consumers.

Description: This recall involves Lifetime Products 6-Foot Seminar Tables with model #80176. The tables have gray metal frames and white plastic tops. The tables measure 6 feet long by 18 inches wide by 28 inches high. The “Lifetime” logo is molded into each end of the upper surface of the table top. A green product ID sticker located on the underside of the table has the model number and the year and chronological day of manufacture in the first five digits (Example: June 23, 2020 = 20175), followed by a two-digit number for the factory. The recalled tables were manufactured between August 7, 2016 (16220) and June 23, 2020 (20175).

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled seminar tables and contact Lifetime Products for a free repair bracket.

Lifetime Products has received one report from a consumer who identified 11 tables with the brace arms not properly locking into place. No injuries have been reported.

Sold At: Online at Amazon.com, Costco.com, Samsclub.com and other websites and at Lifetime Stores in Utah and Idaho from August 2016 through November 2020 for about $90.

Consumer Contact: Lifetime Products at 800-292-3865 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT Monday through Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. MT, by email at customercare@lifetime.com or online at lifetime.com and click on “Product Recall” for more information.

The previous item can be cited with the URL: https://www.kashrut.com/News/?alert=W1155
Older news

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