By Katherine Rich, CEO of the NZ Food & Grocery Council
Julian Baggini is one of my favourite thinkers, and his entertaining and thought-provoking book, Do They Think You Are Stupid: 100 Ways Of Spotting Spin And Nonsense From The Media, Pundits And Politicians, is an excellent resource for anyone in the food...
The New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is considering the provisional implementation of stricter food safety measures in the dairy industry following a recent spate of high-profile product contamination cases.
Fonterra has placed two senior managers “on leave” in the midst of an internal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the recent Clostridium botulinum whey protein concentrate (WPC) contamination scare.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed new standards for infant nutrition, substitute foods, fortified atta (flour) and ingredients as part of a wide overhaul of its standards.
New Zealand’s main opposition party has called for a standalone food safety agency in the wake of international bans on New Zealand dairy produce due to recent contamination scares.
Fonterra has challenged the accuracy of Sri Lankan tests for agricultural chemical, dicyandiamide (DCD), after it was ordered to pull two batches of apparently contaminated milk powder from shelves in the country.
The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) in Hong Kong has said almost 400 samples of ready-to-eat (RTE) food kept in refrigeration passed listeria monocytogenes testing.
The tone of Theo Spierings, chief executive of Fonterra, changed from mea culpa earlier in the week to defiance last night as he assured New Zealanders that Chinese authorities and consumers had “appreciated” the speed with which Fonterra had acted to...
With Fonterra’s contamination crisis unlikely to die down soon, the fall-out in China is likely to have more of a lingering impact on New Zealand’s continuing trade with the country than it will on Fonterra, say industry experts.
The Coca-Cola Company has recalled a Minute Maid line in China after New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra warned that whey protein used in the drinks could cause potentially fatal botulism.
Fonterra, the diary major at the centre of the C. botulinum scare concerning several batches of whey protein concentrate used to manufacture Nutricia’s Karicare infact formula, has confirmed that Chinese authorities have temporarily suspended the import...
Asia-Pacific health ministries are closely following developments following the release of a food safety warning by New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries before the weekend advising of instances of the Clostridium botulinum bacterium in several...
India’s food standards regulator has approved the use of SurePure’s proprietary liquid photopurification technology as an alternative process to thermal pasteurisation for milk and other dairy products.
In the wake of contaminated lunches killing 23 children in India, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization is calling for countries to step up efforts to ban use of deadly pesticides.
New rules released under the Food Safety Modernization Act will push more responsibility onto food importers and third party inspectors in an effort to prevent food borne illnesses at their source overseas rather than to try to catch them when they land...
A US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) representitive claims that consumers can rest assured that the recent deaths of Indian schoolchildren from pesticide-contaminated lunches will not repeat in America.
The starch-based food scare that hit the headlines around Southeast Asia last month, is continuing to impact on Taiwan’s food industry, with both chain retailers and individual vendors still suffering from the aftermath.
A technical expert committee set up by India’s Supreme Court, has this week recommended an indefinite moratorium on the field trials of genetically modified crops until the government tables suitable mechanisms for regulation and safety.
A PhD candidate at the National University of Singapore has devised a way to purify water using the peels of apples and tomatoes. This is the first time that the peels of the two fruits have been used to remove different types of pollutants in water.
The statutory agency for Australia and New Zealand has invited submissions on an application to change the countries’ Food Standards Code to allow food derived from a genetically modified soybean. The closing date for submissions is August 23.
Thermo Fisher Scientific has invested $9.5m in its China Innovation Center to support growing R&D organization, which is expected to add 200 to 300 engineers during the next two to three years.
Heineken insists it is ‘absolutely on top’ of the counterfeiting issues that can appear in emerging markets, after a Vietnamese gang producing fake Tiger and Heineken was busted last week.
Researchers in Singapore have identified that eating high quantities of red meat over a period of time can increase the risk of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
China's Ministry of Land and Resources has announced plans to conduct a survey across the country to assess pollution levels as a means to ascertain the reasons behind excessive cadmium content in rice detected in some regions early this year.
China's cabinet has announced detailed plans to improve the quality of domestic baby milk powder in a bid to stamp out the constant food safety fears that have plagued the country.
A government panel has called for stringent checks for pesticides in fruit and vegetables brought into Delhi after discovering that most of the produce it tested contained dangerous chemical residues.
While it is expected that the Shuanghui takeover of Smithfield Foods will take place once it is rubber-stamped by American authorities, the union will hardly be blessed in the US.
The Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety (CFS) has ordered the recall of an Australian low-fat milk product after routine tests found a bacterial count exceeding the legal limit.
Singapore food inspection authorities have withdrawn 11 starch-based products from Taiwan - mostly tapioca starch balls used in bubble tea - from sale after finding they contained amounts of an unapproved chemical.
China’s authorities need use all their resources to monitor the food market more closely and impose harsher penalties if the country is to bounce back from a spate of food crises, according to its premier, Li Keqiang, earlier this week.
The southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu has has become the latest to outlaw edible tobacco. The order, revealed by the chief minister in the state assembly, is expected to be passed next week.
More people have been arrested for attempting to smuggle infant formula out of Hong Kong since 1 March 2013 than were detained at the border for trafficking drugs throughout the whole of last year, Hong Kong Customs has revealed.
China’s Ministry of Public Security has announced the arrest of 904 suspects during a three-month campaign to prevent meat-related crime, such as the sale of rat and fox under the guise of beef and mutton.
Chinese consumers are paying more for a lower nutritional content when they opt for foreign-made milk formula, according to a study by the China Dairy Industry Association.
The last time I went to China was last year, to visit an old friend who had moved to Shenzhen by marriage. The Chinese government might tout Shenzhen as a Tier-I city, but if your benchmark is Hong Kong, which is immediately to its south, you would probably...
A gluten-free scanning app in Australia could prompt industry to improve nutritional content and label on-pack, says a research fellow from the George Institute for Global Health.
A2 Corporation (A2C) – the New Zealand-based manufacturer of a2 fresh milk – has commenced packing of its new a2 Platinum infant formula range, and hopes to make its first shipment to formula-hungry China next month.
Watching Asia from a Western prism gives you the advantage of seeing the bigger picture. But on the flip-side, you end up benchmarking what you see against what has happened in the West.
The initial findings of a research study has shown that pesticides are the number one problem reported by consumers around the world concerning food imported from China.
China’s new administration is continuing to demonstrate its newfound determination to tackle longstanding food-safety problems by issuing a blueprint of measures it plans to take this year.
Bottled water producer Nongfu Spring has launched an attack on the company it claims is behind allegations that its product contains more chemicals than are allowed in China’s tap water.
Health claims in food and beverage products is perhaps the most talked about topic in the entire food production chain outside of GM. In mature markets like the US—and now Australasia—at least there has been frameworks implemented to rationalise the claim-making...
New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries is working with the kiwifruit industry and the supplier of a range of organically-certified citrus-based products following the unexpected discovery of very low residues of a chemical in some organic kiwifruit...
The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) lifted a ban imposed after the Fukushima disaster on food imports from seven prefectures in Japan.
Chinese dairy giant Mengniu has reported a drop in both revenue and profits for 2012 – a result it has attributed to continuing consumer concern about the quality and safety of domestically-manufactured dairy products.
Swiss infant formula manufacturer, Hero, has moved to dispel concerns about the safety of its Nutradefense brand infant formula in China after authorities in Shanghai ordered retailers to pull it from shelves.
An Indian lamb curry has been found with no lamb and a “mystery meat” rumoured to be dog, according to an analysis done for a BBC Three programme aired this week.
