Category Local Food

Contributed At this time of year, many community groups, volunteer organizations, work places and other groups celebrate Thanksgiving with a potluck meal. When cooking for a large group, it is important to keep in mind the needs of your guests. Do any of your guests have food allergies or dietary restrictions? Could some be at... Continue Reading Read More

Inspectors from Vancouver Coastal Health have discovered a local family-owned business did not use proper processing in the production of meat products including sausages and salami, which could allow for growth of potentially deadly bacteria. The health department on the West Coast of Canada has issued a public warning for eight different products from Polonia... Continue Reading Read More

Many vendors at farmers markets take inadequate precautions to prevent the spread of foodborne illness, and they should be trained to reduce food-safety risks, according to Penn State researchers who completed the final phase of an innovative five-year study. Using a comprehensive three-way approach, the research assessed food safety behaviors at Pennsylvania farmers markets using... Continue Reading Read More

It’s time to grab a sun hat and shovel, or rake, and head to the beach to dig for clams or gather oysters. What could be a better summer outing? But time is of the essence. This season’s last chance for minus low tides, which are the best times to dig for shellfish or gather... Continue Reading Read More

The First Nations Health Authority and Island Health are warning the public following confirmed cases of Vibrio cholera infection associated with eating herring eggs. Island Health it is investigating confirmed cases of cholera contracted by people on Vancouver Island after one confirmed case and two suspected cases were linked to herring eggs. No new lab-confirmed... Continue Reading Read More

From time to time, I am asked why food safety hazards seem more prevalent now than they were two, three or more decades ago. Why are more types of food at risk? Where were Norovirus, Listeria monocytogenes, and other foodborne pathogens back then? Why were we able to sample raw cake batter and raw cookie... Continue Reading Read More

Pennsylvania officials warned consumers earlier this month that they should immediately discard all raw milk from Conoco View Dairy because it was contaminated with Campylobacter, which can cause serious infections and is killed by pasteurization. As of Monday, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, which issued the warning Feb. 15, had not received any reports of... Continue Reading Read More

The Hawaii Department of Health has confirmed the first case of rat lungworm disease in the state this year in an adult resident of West Hawaii on Hawaii Island. The individual became seriously ill earlier this month and is being treated at a hospital. Laboratory results confirmed evidence of the rat lungworm parasite in the... Continue Reading Read More

Baby chick season is upon us. Some say the big question is whether the chicken or the egg came first, but public health pros say a more important question is whether you know the food safety do’s and don’ts involved with backyard flocks. In 2017, live poultry was responsible for 10 Salmonella outbreaks in the United States, sickening more... Continue Reading Read More

The legalization of cannabis in a growing number of U.S. states and Canadian provinces continues to raise concerns about a variety of food safety hazards, including pathogens such as Salmonella and E. coli. “There are many food safety hazards associated with cannabis production and distribution that could put the public at risk, but are not yet adequately controlled,” Steven Burton... Continue Reading Read More