A new nonprofit organization called the Adult Beverage Alliance (ABA) has been formed in Massachusetts with the goal of advocating for responsible state-level regulation of drinks containing hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
The Penn State Extension is offering two educational events for the food industry in April 2024: a free webinar on April 9 about third-party audits for dairy processors, and an in-person workshop on April 29 in Pennsylvania about small-scale commercial canning.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA’s FSIS) has updated its guidance for calculating retained water in meat and poultry products. Establishments will have until September 30, 2024 to submit revised retained water protocols and until April 1, 2025, to make any necessary label changes.
Addressing the recent wave of state-level food additives bans and bills, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) has released resources to help inform the public about the benefits of food additives and preservatives, as well as to keep industry abreast of current regulations.
With funding from the Center for Produce Safety, a researcher from the University of Arizona is exploring the usefulness of a handheld genetic sequencing device for in-field microbial characterization of irrigation water by the produce industry.
The Singapore Food Agency has proposed amendments to federal regulations that would allow the use of new ingredients in infant formula, and would also extend the use of permitted food additives.
West Virginia passed a bill known as the Truth in Food Labeling Act, restricting the language that can be used on labels for cell-based meats, plant-based meat alternatives, and other “analogue products,” such as insect-based foods. The bill awaits the Governor’s signature.
NASEM has completed a study to better understand the nutritional benefits of seafood consumption versus the health hazards posed by contaminants like toxic heavy metals. The study fulfills a request from FDA, partly in a Closer to Zero effort to answer questions about mercury exposure. A webinar about the findings will be held on March 26, 2024.
PFAS are sometimes used in pesticides as active substances or co-formulants. An analysis of EU pesticide residue monitoring data by Pesticide Action Network Europe shows that the average proportion of produce containing PFAS pesticide residues in the EU has nearly tripled over the last decade.