NSAC Archives for the 'Food Safety' Category
Update: Agriculture & Animal Welfare
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down California Law on Downed Animals Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion in the case National Meat Association v. Harris that strikes down a California law with requirements for how slaughterhouses handle pigs that cannot walk, referred to in the law as “nonambulatory.” The California law requires slaughterhouses Read the Rest…
FSIS Proposed Rule for Generic Labels
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) announced a proposed rule to change its generic label approval process. This new rule would allow food processing establishments to use new labels or to modify labels on a broader set of products without first submitting the labels to FSIS for approval. FSIS will still verify that labels comply Read the Rest…
USDA Awards Grants to Universities to Improve Food Safety
Friday, December 9th, 2011
On Wednesday, December 7, Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced 17 grants to universities in 13 states to improve the safety of our food supply through research, education, and extension in a number of areas. A total of $10.4 million was awarded by USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) through the National Integrated Read the Rest…
FDA Rejects Petitions to Ban Certain Antibiotics in Animal Agriculture
Thursday, November 10th, 2011
On Monday, November 7, much to the dismay of the sustainable agriculture community, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) denied two citizen petitions that asked the Agency to ban certain uses of antibiotics in food animals. The petitions, filed in 1999 and 2005, urge the FDA to withdraw the approvals for antibiotics given to Read the Rest…
NSAC Submits Comments to FDA on Co-Management
Friday, October 7th, 2011
The Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) was enacted into law at the beginning of this year, and the rulemaking process for the legislation is currently underway, with the proposed rule expected to be submitted for public comment near the start of next year. The FSMA includes several provisions that are related to wildlife and Read the Rest…
2011 Specialty Crop Block Grants Announced
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
On Wednesday, October 5, USDA Deputy Secretary Merrigan announced the 2011 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program awards, the sixth year of awards for this program. In total, 55 grants are being awarded for 740 initiatives totaling about $55 million. On a press call announcing the awards, Merrigan noted that “this year, similar to last year, Read the Rest…
FDA Announces Traceback Pilot Projects
Friday, September 23rd, 2011
by Steve Warshawer The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to improve methods for tracing products in the food system, especially for high risk foods. Prior to developing rules and regulations on traceback, Congress is requiring FDA to conduct pilot projects on these traceback methods. FDA has chosen to Read the Rest…
USDA and FDA Data on Antibiotic Resistance Is Deficient
Friday, September 16th, 2011
Industrialized livestock and poultry operations are the major users of antibiotics and related drugs in the U.S. A Food & Drug Administration (FDA) assessment estimated that in 2009, 29 million pounds of antibiotics were given to food-producing animals. These drugs are routinely used at low doses in overcrowded Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) to Read the Rest…
USDA Proposes New Animal ID and Tracing Regulation
Saturday, August 27th, 2011
On Thursday, August 11, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issued a proposed rule with national official identification and documentation requirements for the traceability of livestock moving interstate. Animals covered by the proposed rule include cattle, bison, sheep, goats, swine, horses and other equines, captive cervids and poultry. USDA’s stated purpose for implementing the Read the Rest…
Tester – Now More Than Ever
Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition For Immediate Release August 17, 2011 Contact: Helen Dombalis 202-547-5754 Tester – Now More Than Ever Washington, DC August 17, 2011 – Some national produce industry groups seem to be exploiting a recent outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria, thought to have originated in strawberries from an Oregon farm, for the Read the Rest…
