I have a ghoulish fascination with Clostridium botulinum… — Botulism — a deadly foodborne illness — made an unexpected appearance in plant-based milk last month. And it sent a chill through the food safety community. Botulism is deadly Botulism is possibly the scariest food-borne illness there is. And I for one would NOT want to get it. Here’s what happens to you…

You really don’t want this biotoxin in your food — No one likes food poisoning…. all that vomiting and diarrhoea. But food poisoning doesn’t just cause gastrointestinal symptoms. Here’s the story of a food-borne toxin that causes food poisoning with very odd — and distressing — symptoms. When you get food poisoning, you usually experience gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea, vomiting…

Shocking allegations about a misinformation campaign around glyphosate and Roundup, the world’s most used agricultural chemical — I remember spraying Roundup on my friend’s farm as a teenager in 1985. We sprayed it from tanks worn as backpacks, from long metal wands with plastic trigger handles. We sprayed it in sheep paddocks and cow pastures, along fence lines, building perimeters and road verges to kill weeds. …

What to look out for this year — Last week I shared my top food fraud trends for 2023. This week, it’s food safety trends. Here’s what I’m seeing more of lately, in the world of food safety, and these are trends that I expect to continue through 2023 and beyond. 1. Direct-to-consumer food businesses making mistakes Direct-to-consumer food businesses sell their products exclusively…

A tragic and preventable disaster in the glycol supply chain — Suspected fraud in the supply chains of medicine manufacturers has resulted in hundreds of deaths that are both tragic and preventable. We first heard about a food safety problem that was possibly linked to children’s medicine in September 2022. At the time, 28 children had died in Ghana, and because…

Food fraud in fresh fruit is a thing — Fruit gets counterfeited. Faked. Counterfeit fruit. Fake fresh fruit? (Really?) It can be hard to believe, for those of us who live in places where high quality, reasonably-priced fruit is the norm, but fruit counterfeiting is a thing. It occurs more commonly in countries where premium imported fruit is an…

Infant formula makers scrutinised — A story that dominated food safety news in 2022 — the Abbott infant formula Cronobacter linked recall and fallout — is showing signs of becoming food fraud news, as the US Department of Justice gets involved. Is anyone else getting Peanut Corporation of America vibes here? Reminder: the Peanut Corporation…

An emerging food safety issue — This is an extract from The Rotten Apple, a weekly newsletter for food professionals, policy-makers and purveyors. Subscribe for weekly insights, latest news and emerging trends in food safety, food authenticity and sustainable supply chains. 🍏 Discover The Rotten Apple 🍏 PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are ‘forever chemicals’ that…

Precautionary labelling is a minefield for food businesses, but new work from the FAO will help — This is an extract from The Rotten Apple, a weekly newsletter for food professionals, policy-makers and purveyors. Subscribe for weekly insights, latest news and emerging trends in food safety, food authenticity and sustainable supply chains. 🍏 Discover The Rotten Apple 🍏 Traces of allergens in foods; how much is too…