Nearly all the milk, dairy products and pork in the UK are produced
from animals fed on genetically modified (GM) crops, and none are
labelled, according to a study by an organic lobby group.
The European Food Safety Authority's (EFSA) GMO panel has no safety concerns after reviewing data from French scientists suggesting toxicity concerns in rats fed the MON863 variety of GM maize from Monsanto.
Retail meat from pigs, chickens and other livestock could be
infected with a "superbug" strain of methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), according to a UK study released
today.
A new food contaminant testing method for melamine and cyanuric
acid decreases the time it takes to get accurate results for meats,
its developer claims.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has revealed that it will review the new data presented by French scientists that revealed toxicity concerns in rats fed the MON863 variety of GM maize from Monsanto.
The European Commission has lifted extra controls on imports of US
corn products for unauthorised genetically modified material,
claiming that these are no longer necessary.
About 10 per cent of British meat cutting plants, or 47 out of 465,
are not following theregulations on bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE), according to a survey by the country's food
regulator.
Omega-3 fish oil manufacturers have been feeling the crunch as
their crude oil suppliers have upped prices by about 15 percent in
the past year, which could in turn spike prices for formulators as
well.
Mixing a chlorate-based compound into livestock feed or water could
dramatically reduce Salmonella and E. coli in gastrointestinal
tracts, claim researchers.
To feed the world's increasing appetite for fish, food processors
are going to have to turn to commercial aquaculture farms for their
supplies, according to a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
report.
Metals, dioxins, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in a majority
of foods and offals remain at levels considered safe in the EU,
according to three scientific surveys published yesterday by the
UK's regulator.
Poland's controversial ban on the use of 16 varieties of
genetically modified maize has been backed by the European
Commission, despite warnings the law broke EU rules.
Australia 's policy of restricting antibiotic use in food-producing
animals may be linked with dramatically lower levels of
drug-resistant bacteria found in patients, according to scientists.
Sweden has been hit with a double blow, becoming the first in the
Scandinavian region to detect avian influenza in wild birds, and
also finding its first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE) in a cow.
Europes biotech industry has criticised Romania's proposed ban on
transgenic soybeans, claiming that the decision will negatively
impact both the European food industry and consumers.
The European Commission has set maximum levels for dioxins and PCBs
in food as fears grow in three EU countries, where pig and poultry
feed was found to be contaminated with the family of cancer-causing
chemicals.
Europe's dioxin crisis has widened, with food regulators in
Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany placing quarantines on
hundreds more pig and poultry producers that received contaminated
feed.
Belgium and the Netherlands face another dioxin crisis, after the
cancer-causing chemical was detected in pig and poultry feed used
by hundreds of farms.
Another cow with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) has been
found in Canada, a second blow against the US' recent success at
regaining its international markets.
It is ten years since the first large-scale planting of genetically
modified (GM) crops. Food Navigator looks at both sides of
the argument to assess the future of the technology and its
implications for the European food industry.
Beef on the bone could soon be back on the list of products
processors can use under a European Commission proposal on relaxing
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) control measures.
Europe's opposition to genetically modified ingredients will
significantly increase producers' costs over the next three years
as it becomes ever harder to secure GM-free supplies, says a new
report.
The European Commission yesterday authorised the import of
genetically modified (GM) oilseed rape for use in animal feed, the
third such product to be approved after current regulations came
into force last year.
A New Zealand research group plans to create a genetically modified
dairy herd capable of producing 'medicinal milk' that it says may
be used to fight a range of diseases and maintain a healthy immune
system, reports Chris...
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has given a negative
opinion about the safety of BioProtein, but has approved Reuteri
Pig Powder, Econase Wheat Plus and Roxazyme G2 as feed additivies
for various animals.
Demands for both the US and Canada to take responsibility for
genetically modified (GM) food contamination and sign up to the
Cartagena Biosafety Protocol are likely to be frustrated, writes
Anthony Fletcher.
Officials continue to remain tight-lipped over reports of a foot
and mouth (FMD) outbreak outside Beijing - as the country takes
precautions to avoid another bird flu pandemic, Tom Armitage
reports.
Published details of a Monsanto report are at the center of a new
storm over whether genetically modified (GM) food could be harmful
to human health, writes Anthony Fletcher.
Deep divisions over biotech food ingredients once again evident as
member states fail to approve a gene-altered corn designed by US
biotech giant Monsanto, reports Lindsey Partos.
Brussels clears new lab technology that can detect illegal GM
sweetcorn Bt 10 following the discovery of this unapproved maize in
Europe's food chain, writes Lindsey Partos.
Forcing the traceability card, the European Union has voted to
block imports of certain US grain unless they prove to be free of
the genetically modified maize Bt10.
Seeking to clear up confusion over approved GM ingredients, the
European Commission has published a list of the 26 biotech products
cleared for use across the EU 25 member nations.
Forcing the traceability card, the European Union has voted to
block imports of certain US grain unless they prove they are free
of the genetically modified maize Bt10,reports Lindsey
Partos.
Vulnerabilities in the international food chain are evident as an
unapproved genetically modified corn leaks into feed, flour and
oils; but Europe's food safety agency says this week the illegal
Bt10 corn is unlikely to pose...
Vulnerabilities in the international food chain are evident as an
unapproved genetically modified corn leaks into feed, flour and
oils; but Europe's food safety agency says this week the illegal
Bt10 corn is unlikely to pose...
With the countdown extended, talks continue this week in Geneva
between the US and Brussels to move the entrenched trade dispute on
genetically modified organisms forward.
UN-backed food organisation warns food producers and consumers to
stay calm, after a few cases of mad cow disease are identified in
Canada and the US, and last month the first case of Bovine
Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in a goat.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is working with
Swiss experts to improve global BSE surveillance measures after a
spate of recent bad publicity.
Current science finds no link between goat meat and meat product
consumption and variant Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (vCJD). But a
group of experts calls for new research, to fully understand the
risk this meat may pose to the food...
Europe's food watchdog confirms the first case of mad cow disease
has been identified in a goat in France. This is the first case of
the disease identified in animals other than cattle.
Up-and-coming Advanced Bionutrition (ABN) has captured the
attention of venture capitalists in the biotechnology field,
raising $7.5 million in a second round of private equity funding.
Another case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) has been
reported in Canada, raising fears that public confidence in beef
could be further undermined, writes Anthony Fletcher.