Monthly Archives May 2017

Ontario court could permanently shut down raw milk sales

Raw milk advocates on both sides of the 48th parallel are worried about the outcome of a trial in Ontario because they fear it could provide the template for ending sales of milk without pasteurization throughout Canada. The trial almost seems like a re-run because it involves the Crown versus Ontario’s best known raw milk... Continue Reading Read More

42 cases of norovirus illnesses related to raw oyster consumption sparks AHS warning

Source: Global News

With more than 40 reported cases of norovirus in Alberta linked to raw oysters, Alberta Health Services is reminding people in the province to make sure their seafood is fully cooked before they eat it.

Source: 42 cases of norovirus illnesses related to raw oyster consumption sparks AHS w...

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Britain issues warning about ‘Brexit virus’ in EU pork products

Just in time for summer, there’s a new warning out in Britain over the “Brexit virus,” so named because the pork sausages making people sick are said to originate mostly from pig farms in France, Holland, Germany and Denmark. In other words, the danger is coming from countries in the European Union that Britain through... Continue Reading Read More

Publisher’s Platform: Supreme Court weighs in without a word

I can hear a bit of silence in the board rooms of America. Monday the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the appeals of Austin “Jack” DeCoster and his son, Peter DeCoster, without comment. In April 2015 U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett sentenced the DeCosters to prison, saying they knew or should have known about the... Continue Reading Read More

Maybe, don’t know: Do hand sanitizers cut down on illness?

My first reaction to any food safety claim, policy or recommendation is, are fewer people going to barf? I usually don’t get an answer. Because it’s really hard to associate policy with rates of barfing. A couple of weeks ago, … Continue reading Read More

Nacho cheese-linked botulism cases; how?

A father of two small kids, Martin Galindo-Larios Jr. has tragically died. A 33 year old mother of three, Lavinia Kelly, is paralyzed, unable to speak or breathe on her own. The New York Daily news cites, Theresa Kelly recalling her … Continue reading Read More

The intersection of marijuana and food safety

I hate missing hockey. Skipping my Monday night game was worth it though; I spent some time with some old friends at the Rocky Mountain Food Safety Conference in Denver. I’d been with the good folks of Colorado before, speaking at … Continue reading Read More

Jury selection begins May 31 in Siouxland for ‘trial of century’

The region where the borders of Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska meet is called “Siouxland.” It has been ever since 20th Century novelist Frederick Manfred, who wrote the acclaimed “Lord Grizzly” and 21 other works of fiction,  came up with the area moniker. Were he still alive, Manfred would enjoy seeing Elk Point, SD,... Continue Reading Read More

Botulism toxin confirmed in Gehl’s cheese sauce; no recall

Health officials have confirmed that cheese sauce sold at a gas station in California was contaminated with the same type of botulism toxin as victims of a deadly outbreak, but there are no plans for a recall. Although the California Department of Public Health did not name the brand of the cheese sauce, an inspector... Continue Reading Read More

Supreme Court will not review DeCoster sentences in egg cases

Austin “Jack” DeCoster, 83, and his 53-year old son Peter DeCoster are not going to get their day in the Supreme Court after all, but instead are likely to spend their summer and fall taking turns doing 3-month prison sentences at the Federal Prison Camp in Yankton, SD. The DeCosters had petitioned the U.S. Supreme... Continue Reading Read More