FEED - October 2006
Contents
- Victory! FDA advisory committee opposes antibiotic for animal use
- Don't blame the spinach: Industrial agriculture at fault
- Bacteria-killing virus spray approved for food
- Demand for organic food skyrockets
- Kraft will sell non-genetically engineered foods in China
1. Victory! FDA advisory committee opposes antibiotic for animal use
In a victory for public health, the Union of Concerned Scientists helped convince the Food and Drug Administration's Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee to oppose the approval of a new antibiotic for use in cattle. UCS joined other organizations in arguing that use of this drug in animal agriculture could elicit antibiotic resistance to closely related cephalosporin antibiotics, which are important drugs in human medicine. If the FDA acts on the advice of its advisory committee, it will be the first time the agency has denied an application for a new veterinary pharmaceutical due to resistance concerns. Read our testimony.
2. Don't blame the spinach: Industrial agriculture at fault
As diners cautiously return to spinach, experts continue to look for the reasons behind the nationwide E. coli outbreak that killed at least one person and sickened 180. A key factor is our overly centralized production system: a few giant farms in California's Salinas Valley produce three-quarters of the nation's spinach. The outbreak also highlights other unsafe practices, such as feeding cattle antibiotics and an unnatural diet of grain—which increases the likelihood that their manure will contain the particularly virulent type of E. coli bacteria that caused the illnesses—and overloading fields with manure from feedlots. Read more in The New York Times (free registration required).
3. Bacteria-killing virus spray approved for food
The Food and Drug Administration has issued the first approval for a virus-containing spray that kills bacteria on food. The viruses in the spray kill a species of bacteria, Listeria monocytogenes, that is found in uncooked meat and poultry products and that is particularly dangerous for pregnant women. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, listeriosis sickens 2,500 and kills 500 people a year. The spray is intended to be used by food manufacturers on deli meats that aren't usually cooked or reheated before consumption. It is not on the market yet. Read more from ABC News.
4. Demand for organic food skyrockets
The organic sector has been growing at a brisk 15-20 percent a year, compared to overall food sales which grow just 2-4 percent a year, according to an article in the Associated Press. Big chain stores including Safeway and Supervalu are starting their own organic brands, while Wal-Mart has pledged to double its organic offerings. The popularity of organic is good news: more cultivation of organic crops means fewer pesticides in our soil, food, and water, and more options for consumers who care about the health of their families and the planet. But there are also causes for concern. The strong demand for organic could lead to a weakening of the organic standards. Retailers who can't get enough domestic-grown product to satisfy demand could turn to overseas suppliers, whose compliance with U.S. organic regulations is difficult to verify and may be lax. Read the article.
5. Kraft will sell non-genetically engineered foods in China
Kraft Foods, the second largest food producer in the world, has agreed to sell only non-genetically engineered (non-GE) foods in China starting next January. More than a hundred food brands, including those made by companies like PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, and Danone, already offer only non-GE foods in China. Kraft's decision suggests that if the company can provide non-GE food to a market as large as China, it could offer non-GE food to its U.S. market as well—where the GE status of food is not labeled, but where most processed foods are probably made with GE crops (half the corn and most soybeans grown in the United States are GE crops). Read more about Kraft's announcement.
