The FDA is extending the comment period for the meaning of “natural” on food labels until May 10, 2016. This, it says, is…. In direct response to requests from the public…Due to the complexity of this issue, the FDA is committed to providing the public with more time to submit comments. The FDA ... Read More ›
UPDATED:February 9, 2016
UPDATED:January 6, 2016
FDA approves genetically modified salmon, and it won’t be labeled
The FDA has just approved AquAdvantage’s genetically engineered (GMO) Atlantic salmon. The salmon will not have to be labeled as GMO. The FDA has spent at least four years coming to this decision. In previous posts, I’ve discussed. How retailers are promising not to sell GMO ... Read More ›
UPDATED:February 8, 2016
University of Colorado returns Coca-Cola cash!
The University of Colorado School of Medicine recently announced that it was giving back the $1 million that Coca-Cola had donated to fund the Global Energy Balance Network. This is the group of scientists funded by Coca-Cola who were promoting activity as the best way to prevent obesity, but ... Read More ›
UPDATED:October 24, 2018
Are nanoparticles in our food safe? The jury’s still out
Every now and then something reminds me about food nanotechnology, the use of molecular size nanoparticles to whiten or improve the safety or shelf life of processed foods (see previous posts on the topic). What brought this on is a recent report from Australia that sounds all too ... Read More ›
UPDATED:March 22, 2021
Calling HFCS “Corn Sugar” Whether You Like It or Not
I worry a lot about the ability of the FDA to set limits on the excess marketing practices of food companies. The latest cause for worry is the seemingly trivial fuss over what to call High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). HFCS is not especially high in fructose (its fructose content is ... Read More ›
December 16, 2015
USDA Seeks Method to Compensate Farmers for GM Contamination
I am a long-time reader of Food Chemical News, a weekly newsletter covering a huge range of food issues and invaluable for someone like me who lives outside the Beltway and does not have access to the ins and outs of Washington DC politics. An item in the August 30 issue caught my attention: USDA ... Read More ›
February 9, 2016
Q. What’s with the turkey recall? A. Same old, same old
I've been rounding up information about the Cargill recall of ground turkey contaminated with Salmonella Heidelberg. William Neuman at the New York Times related the story on August 3. Same old same old. Cargill is a huge company with, as Bill Marler counts them, a long history of food safety ... Read More ›
UPDATED:February 8, 2016
Does it really cost more to buy healthy food?
I got several calls this week about a new study from the University of Washington (PDF here) arguing that because of the way foods are subsidized, it will cost everyone nearly $400 a year to follow the recommendations of the government's MyPlate food guide. The Seattle group calculates the cost ... Read More ›
February 9, 2016
Let’s talk about McDonald’s Happy Meals changes
McDonald's sent out a press release recently to announce "healthier" changes to its Happy Meals. Healthier? Not quite. The company is announcing a "Commitment to Offer Improved Nutrition Choices" [my emphasis]. "The comprehensive plan aims to help customers — especially families and children — ... Read More ›
February 8, 2016
How Washington gives marketing to kids a free pass
The saddest thing I've read in ages is the FTC's rebuttal to industry charges that it is trying to regulate food marketing to kids. Not so, says FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection head David Vladeck: "The preliminary voluntary principles proposed in April by the Interagency Working Group on ... Read More ›
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