By

USDA Organic Labeling

USDA , , , ,
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversees the National Organic Program and organic labeling in the United States. The National Organic Program is a regulatory program housed within USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, which sets standards for organically produced agricultural products. These standards do not address food safety or nutrition, as these issues are within the regulatory oversight of FDA or other USDA programs. The statutes under which the National Organic Program operates are found here. When a company wants to use organic labeling or label a product in a way that promotes the use of to organic ingredients, they…
Read More
By

FDA Announces Recall of Alfalfa Sprouts After Listeria Monocytogenes is Detected

FDA, USDA , , , ,
On May 8, 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) announced the recall of alfalfa sprouts produced by the company Cleveland Beansprouts Co. Discussed here, the Company is recalling the sprouts due to the possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. For more information about Listeria monocytogenes, please see our previous post here. Through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) Microbiological Data Program (“MDP”), state agencies cooperate with the federal government in collecting and analyzing data to protect consumers from the spread of food-borne pathogens. The sprouts, which were only distributed in Ohio and never crossed state lines, were found to be contaminated…
Read More
By

FDA Issues Statement on USDA BSE (“mad-cow”) Case

FDA, USDA , ,
On April 26, 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) issued a statement concerning the recent announcement confirming a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (“BSE”). The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) announcement confirming and explaining this case may be accessed here. According to the USDA, the particular cow involved was a dairy cow, and thus never had contact with any animals intended to enter the nation's food supply. BSE, more commonly known as “mad-cow disease” is a deadly neurological disease in cattle that causes degeneration in the brain and spinal cord. The disease may be spread from diseased cattle…
Read More