Organic food news

• Traces of Controversial Herbicide Are Found in Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream

  25-07-2017 18:26 via Organic Foods and Products
  The ice cream brand joins the list of food companies that are grappling with trace amounts of glyphosate in their products.
  
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• Is Lidl infringing Kroger’s trademarks? Attorneys weigh in…

  25-07-2017 17:55 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Is Lidl’s ‘Preferred Selection’ private label “confusingly similar” to Kroger’s ‘Private Selection’?  Or is Kroger’s recent trademark infringement lawsuit against Lidl merely an opportunistic bid to derail a rival’s US market entry? 
  
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• Social aspects of grilling create year-round marketing opportunities for brands, retailers, Acosta finds

  25-07-2017 15:23 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  For many Americans grilling is more than a means to put dinner on the table – it is a way to celebrate special occasions and everyday joys with friends, family and neighbors – creating an extended marketing opportunity for brands and retailers alike, according to new research from Acosta. 
  
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• Lidl’s US business model will evolve, says Bernstein: ‘Aldi prices with Harris Teeter service and quality is not sustainable’

  25-07-2017 01:11 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  “Lidl will be a very real threat for small scale grocers that lack differentiation or operational efficiencies," predict analysts at Bernstein. However, its success in the US “is by no means a foregone conclusion,” they caution.
  
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• Protein2o raises $4m, attracts ex-Gatorade execs to support ‘explosive’ growth

  25-07-2017 00:29 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Protein2o – a rapidly-growing brand of flavored waters infused with electrolytes and 15g of whey protein – has completed a $4m capital raise and attracted two high-profile ex-Gatorade executives as its president and chairwoman after a year of “explosive” growth.
  
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• New qualified health claim for macadamia nuts shows FDA’s evolving stance on dietary fat

  25-07-2017 00:02 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  FDA’s decision to greenlight a qualified health claim connecting macadamia nuts to the reduced risk of heart disease despite the ingredient’s saturated fat content suggests the agency may give manufacturers a little slack to make health claims as long as the product’s overall benefits outweigh the risks.
  
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• New qualified health claim for macadamia nuts shows FDA’s evolving stance of dietary fat

  25-07-2017 00:02 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  FDA’s decision to greenlight a qualified health claim connecting macadamia nuts to the reduced risk of heart disease despite the ingredient’s saturated fat content suggests the agency may give manufacturers a little slack to make health claims as long as the product’s overall benefits outweigh the risks.
  
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• Should soda with non-caloric sweeteners be taxed too? In Philadelphia and Cook County, that’s the case

  24-07-2017 17:47 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Proponents of sin taxes say that putting a levy on sugar-sweetened drinks may play a pivotal role in fighting obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. But two of the eight US locations that have passed such a tax—Cook County (Chicago) and Philadelphia —passed ordinances that tax beverages with non-caloric sweeteners as well.
  
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• As soda sales fall, kombucha rises

  24-07-2017 17:47 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  Tumbling soda sales have opened the door to the mainstream market for a variety of functional beverages that were previously relegated to the natural channel, including kombuncha sales of which, according to one entrepreneur, grew 41% to $534 million last year and are expected to reach $4 billion by 2024.
  
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• Does healthy food need a marketing makeover? 'Indulgent' descriptions make people eat more vegetables

  24-07-2017 11:15 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  ‘Hold the green beans but pass the sweet sizzlin’ ones.’ Using indulgent words to describe vegetables makes people eat more of them – even if there is no difference in the way they are prepared, say Stanford scientists.
  
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• Bush’s Best recalls beans because can seams are compromised

  24-07-2017 06:01 via Food Safety News
  Bush Brothers & Co. is recalling three flavors of canned baked beans from retailers nationwide after discovering defective side seams in some cans, which could allow the beans to spoil or become contaminated with pathogens.
  To view photos of all three flavors of Bush’s Beans subject to this recall, please click on the image.
  “This recall was initiated after our internal quality assurance checks identified the issue. Subsequent investigations indicated a temporary quality issue fr
  
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• Next up for ag gag: Appeal to 10th U.S. Circuit expected soon

  24-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  During oral arguments before an appellate panel in Seattle in May, questions were flying so fast at responding attorney Justin Marceau that at one point Judge M. Margaret McKeown told him he could slow down, there would be time for his answers.
  Cramped living conditions and lack of access to the outdoors are two of the alleged abuses animal activists sometimes try to capture with undercover photos and videos. Photo illustration
  McKeown and Judges Carlos Bea and Richard Tallman are on t
  
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• Cow had 8,000% the legal limit of drug in edible tissue

  24-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  A beef cow-calf operation is on notice from the Food and Drug Administration because of the presence of three drugs in edible tissue samples collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Testing showed residue of one drug at more than 8,000 percent the amount allowed by law.
  Photo illustration
  Officials from the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) inspected the Newcastle, NE, farm owned by Janine and Jerald Stewart, where the company produces animal
  
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• Guiding Stars could give retailers competitive edge as more shoppers look for healthy options

  24-07-2017 00:25 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Using a novel nutrition rating system, such as Guiding Stars, could give retailers and food service chains a competitive edge by creating the perception they offer more of the healthy, fresh foods that today’s consumers increasingly want, new research suggests.
  
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• Foodservice: Front lines of food safety require sacrifices

  23-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  Restaurant managers, wait staff, cooks and kitchen workers are on the front lines of food safety every day.
  His day had just begun but already he was headed back home. The look of defeat in his eyes, the slight grimace on his face, and the sweat on his brow gave it all away: He was going home sick.
  During the past several months I have had the privilege of interviewing and surveying dozens of foodservice workers about their food safety practices as part of my doctoral research. The man befo
  
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• FDA echoes CDC: Fresh papayas linked to Salmonella outbreak

  23-07-2017 03:19 via Food Safety News
  No recall has been issued, but Food and Drug Administration officials are warning the public against eating Maradol papayas from Mexico in general — and Caribeña brand specifically — because they have been linked to a Salmonella outbreak.
  One person in New York City has died and 46 others across 12 states have been confirmed with the outbreak strain of Salmonella bacteria.
  “If anyone has these papayas in their home, they should dispose of them immediately. These can be i
  
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• Idaho Foodbank recalls 13.5 tons of food because of cooler issue

  22-07-2017 06:10 via Food Safety News
  The Idaho Foodbank is recalling 13.5 tons of soup, eggs, cheese and coconut beverages after discovering a refrigeration malfunction, which could have allowed the growth of bacteria and life-threatening pathogens.
  To view the full-sized photographs of food recalled by the Idaho Foodbank, please click on the image.
  “The Idaho Foodbank discovered the problem after reviewing cooler temperature records during high heat,” according to the recall notice posted on the Food and Drug Administr
  
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• Bhu Foods recalls protein bars because of Listeria risk

  22-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  Another brand of protein snacks, Bhu Foods of San Diego, is under recall because they contain organic sunflower seeds from Hudson Valley Foods Inc., which reported finding Listeria monocytogenes in its production facility in recent weeks.
  “As a result of a recall of sunflower seeds from Hudson Valley Foods Inc., Bhu Foods’ supplier of organic sunflower seeds, advised Bhu Foods that ingredients sold to the company have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes,
  
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• One dead, 46 sick in Salmonella outbreak traced to papayas

  22-07-2017 01:52 via Food Safety News
  Federal officials have joined Maryland’s Health Department in a warning against eating yellow Maradol papayas because of Salmonella contamination, reporting one person has died and at least 46 others are sick in an ongoing outbreak that began in mid-May.
  The CDC posted this photo with the outbreak notice, describing Maradol papayas as large, oval fruits that weigh 3 or more pounds, with green skins that turn yellow when the fruit is ripe. The flesh inside the fruit is salmon-colored.&rdquo
  
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• Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: The business case for kosher certification

  21-07-2017 17:39 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  Ethical claims on food and beverages sold in the US are almost as ubiquitous as the Nutrition Facts panel and while they are not legally mandated by FDA like nutritional information, some manufacturers might feel like they are just as obligatory given the sales boost and brand loyalty they inspire.
  
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• Better Bean Co. founders: ‘We believe Better Bean will become an iconic household brand’

  21-07-2017 17:39 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Convenience is not necessarily mutually exclusive from freshness, and The Better Bean Company is an example of a brand that is catering to consumer demand for quick, grab-and-go yet fresh products.
  
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• Krave launches first-ever nationally televised ad campaigns

  21-07-2017 16:37 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Artisanal jerky brand KRAVE launched its first ever televised national ad campaign this week, a testament to how the brand, and the category, has matured.
  
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• The top 10 US bread suppliers in 2017: Rising sales for Aryzta, Bimbo and Flowers

  21-07-2017 12:32 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  US fresh bread value sales have flat-lined so far in 2017, but there are some rising stars, IRI data for the 52 weeks, ending June 11, 2017 shows.
  
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• Lab confirms norovirus in Chipotle customer; at least 60 sick

  21-07-2017 06:01 via Food Safety News
  An announcement by local health officials that they have identified at least 60 people who became sick after eating at a Chipotle Mexican Grill location in Virginia this past weekend combined with a viral video of rodents in a Dallas location Thursday to drive the company’s stock to a four-year low.
  At least one of the customers of the Sterling, VA, Chipotle restaurant has tested positive for norovirus, according to David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Public Health Department.
  
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• Steer clear of fair foibles — pun intended; pigs problematic, too

  21-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  It’s fair season, and a new crop of parents is taking excited youngsters to county and state fairs across the country so they can see the farm animals. Not only see them, but pet them as well. Maybe even kiss them.
  Stop right there, many veterinarians and fair directors will say. Before heading to the fairgrounds parents should take time to learn about how animals can infect people with intestinal diseases such as E. coli, Listeria, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium and swine flu. Yes, even t
  
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• Chipotle’s food safety officials recently visited Washington D.C.

  21-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  James Marsden, top food safety official for Chipotle Mexican Grill, and Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, who joined the Denver-based burrito chain’s Food Safety Advisory Board in January, met on June 1 with top officials at USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
  Hagen was USDA under secretary for food safety from 2010 to 2013. Her return with Marsden to her former offices in the Jamie L. Whitten Building on Independence Avenue in Washington D.C. was to update FSIS on Chipotle’s fo
  
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• Growth in low pH beverages creates opportunity for pectin

  21-07-2017 00:12 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  As palates in North America change and acidified foods become more acceptable, space is created, too, for additives such as pectin that can handle specific pH regimes.
  
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• What Amazon’s meal kit service means to category’s future and competition with grocery retailers

  20-07-2017 18:35 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  There’s a very likely chance that Amazon will come to dominate the meal kit category, according to market research analyst Howard Waxman at Packaged Facts.
  
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• Trust in nutritional science ‘deflating’, claim Dutch scientists

  20-07-2017 13:12 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Nutrition science appears to be in crisis with a public reluctance to trust nutritional insights, according to a Dutch group of scientists, who also believe the subject’s boundaries are hampering progress. 
  
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• Chipotle reopens as customers continue to report illnesses

  20-07-2017 07:02 via Food Safety News
  The Chipotle Mexican Grill location in Virginia that was closed Monday after customer complaints of foodborne illnesses reopened in time for the lunch rush Wednesday with CEO Steve Ells saying he is confident in the safety of the chain’s food.
  Customers who ate at the Chipotle Mexican Grill location in Sterling, VA, have been posting reports of foodborne illnesses along with receipts from the restaurant and documents from their doctors on the website iwaspoisoned.com.
  Loudoun County Health
  
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• Maryland confirms papayas contaminated with Salmonella

  20-07-2017 06:01 via Food Safety News
  The Maryland Department of Health is warning consumers to not eat Caribeña’s brand yellow Maradol papayas because they could be contaminated with salmonella bacteria.
  The yellow papayas have been distributed to stores throughout the state of Maryland.
  State officials discovered the contamination in the course of an ongoing Salmonella case investigation, according to the June 19 warning from the Maryland Department of Health posted the warning.
  “Consume
  
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• Raw oyster consumption continues, as do vibriosis outbreaks

  20-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  Since the beginning of June, Public Health Officials have investigated multiple reports of people developing vibriosis symptoms after consuming raw oysters at several restaurants and markets in Seattle-King County area.There are now 25 confirmed and probable victims who all experienced the watery diarrhea, abdominal cramping and vomiting of vibriosis, as reported by Public Health of Seattle-King County.
  “Environmental health inspe
  
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• Produce states get $30 million to help FDA enforce new rule

  20-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  Forty-three states and territories are getting a total of $30.9 million from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to help the federal agency implement the Food Safety Modernization Act’s Produce Safety Rule.
  “Congress envisioned the states and FDA working together as an integrated food safety system when it passed FSMA,” said Barbara P. Glenn, CEO of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) when she announced the funding on Wednesday.
  She prais
  
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• The ready meal category is ripe for growth and likely will pull consumers from meal kits and frozen

  20-07-2017 02:23 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  The ready meal category in the US is set to explode in part as a natural evolution of the meal kit craze that taught consumers how to cook healthy, fresh food at home, but which still ultimately takes more time than many people have daily, according to one entrepreneur. 
  
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• Koia ‘positioned to become category leader’ in plant-based beverages with $7.5m investment

  20-07-2017 00:46 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Koia, a refrigerated RTD plant-based protein beverage company, has secured a $7.5m funding round led by private investment firm KarpReilly and existing investor AccelFoods.
  
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• McCormick’s purchase of Reckitt food brands could threaten Kraft Heinz’s leadership in condiments

  20-07-2017 00:08 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  McCormick & Company’s acquisition of Reckitt Benckiser’s food portfolio, which includes iconic brands such as French’s mustard, place the company within a stone’s throw of condiment and sauce category leader Kraft Heinz, according to a senior food analyst with Euromonitor. 
  
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• Consumer demands placing more pressure on flavor, texture of sports nutrition products

  19-07-2017 18:13 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Flavor innovation is usually seen as a key component of food product development and of less concern for supplements.  But as sports nutrition brands seek competitive advantages and to bring in fringe, lifestyle-type consumers, flavors are taking center stage.
  
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• The future of grocerants? Deliveries, humanoids and a good dose of life-hacking, says supermarket guru

  19-07-2017 18:00 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Amazon's increased penetration into the grocery sphere will mean computer wizards, molecular biologists and sustainability experts will be developing ultra-intelligent grocerants of the future, predicts 'supermarket guru' Phil Lempert.
  
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• Bonafide Provisions expands the reach and appeal of bone broth with Drinkable Veggies

  19-07-2017 18:00 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  As recently as two years ago, bone broth was virtually unheard of by the masses, but now it is seemingly everywhere with newcomers crowding the category and pushing early players such as Bonafide Provisions to innovate to stay ahead of the competition. 
  
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• Trade groups sue to block New York City from enforcing menu labeling ahead of FDA

  19-07-2017 16:12 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Leading trade groups for the retailer and food service industries are suing New York City to stop inspectors from holding their members responsible for posting calorie counts for prepared “restaurant-type food” ahead of a similar federal rule that has been delayed repeatedly. 
  
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• Poultry producer Perdue Farms modifies its animal welfare policy

  19-07-2017 15:48 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  Increasing the number of chicken houses with windows, providing chickens with more space, and raising and studying slower-growing chickens are among priorities Perdue Farms emphasized in its new animal welfare guide.
  
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• NSF’s EyeSucceed becomes Glass Partner; refines safety focus

  19-07-2017 14:00 via Food Safety News
  
  Onsite inspections have long been a standard tool for food safety training and enforcement efforts, but wearable technology and augmented reality are combining to change that with Google Glass.
  EyeSucceed, a technology company focusing on food safety, is the latest Glass Partner, according to an announcement this morning from parent company NSF International. NSF’s Tom Chestnut, vice president for global food safety and quality, and Jennifer Tong, formerly of the National Restaurant Associ
  
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• General Mills wins fight to label Nature Valley granola bars as ‘natural’

  19-07-2017 13:37 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  General Mills has won a lawsuit alleging its Nature Valley granola bars cannot be labelled “100% natural” as they purportedly contain traces of herbicide.
  
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• Coca-Cola enters meal kit market with Chef’d partnership: ‘Beverages are an integral part of the meal occasion’

  19-07-2017 12:29 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  As consumers continue to seek new flavors and experiences, Coca-Cola is exploring the booming US meal kit market in a new partnership with Chef’d that offers co-branded meal kits with complementary Coca-Cola brands. 
  
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• Texas reports uptick in Cyclospora cases; cooking kills parasite

  19-07-2017 06:01 via Food Safety News
  
  The Lone Star State put out the warning on Monday — those microscopic parasites are back.
  During June and July, the Texas Department of State Health Services saw a spike in the intestinal illness caused by consuming food or water contaminated with Cyclospora parasites, upping the year-to-date number of cases to 68. There were 148 cases of cyclosporiasis illness in 2016.
  The 2016 case count was an improvement on the previous three years. Texas reported 351 cyclosporiasis in 2013; 200 i
  
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• USDA says mad cow case in Alabama is ‘atypical’ and not risky

  19-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  
  An 11-year old cow in Alabama is the fifth case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) to be found in the United States since 2003, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced late on Tuesday.
  The non-scientific name for BSE is mad cow disease, a prion disease that reached epidemic levels in Great Britain in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
  Like the previous U.S. cases, the Alabama animal was ruled to be an atypical case of BSE.  Atypical is rare, and occurs in cattle older than 8 years,
  
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• Sign of transparency: Blue Bell reopens the observation deck

  19-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  
  Access to the observation deck at Blue Bell Creameries plant in Brenham, TX, is free and open to the public again for self-guided tours for those who want to see how ice cream is made.
  It was last open before the iconic ice cream company went through a crushing Listeria outbreak two years ago that sickened 10 people and was associated with three deaths. Before that happened, the observation deck was the last stop on a ticketed tour that saw Blue Blue play host to 225,000 visitors a year.
  Now the
  
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• Chipotle mum on status of restaurant linked to outbreak

  19-07-2017 06:00 via Food Safety News
  
  No one was answering the phone at the Chipotle Mexican Grill on Tripleseven Road in Sterling, VA, Tuesday evening and no one from the chain’s corporate headquarters in Denver was answering questions about when they might reopen the location, which is implicated in an ongoing foodborne illness outbreak.
  Earlier in the day the corporation’s public relations staff issued a statement attributed to Jim Marsden, Chipotle’s executive director for food safety, acknowledging the outbrea
  
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• Woodstock brand organic vanilla oats recalled for Listeria risk

  19-07-2017 01:40 via Food Safety News
  
  Garden of Light Inc., doing business at Gluten Free Solutions in East Hartford, CT, has joined the list of companies recalling food because it contains ingredients from Hudson Valley Farms Inc., which found Listeria monocytogenes in its facility. Hudson Valley provided an ingredient to Garden of Light, which manufactures the recalled oats for Blue Marble Brands.
  Hudson Valley Farms notified Garden of Light of the potential contamination,&nbs
  
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• Break The Cup coffee breaks the mold by creating a new animal-free fermentation process

  18-07-2017 23:05 via FoodNavigator-USA RSS
  
  The thought of fermenting coffee beans by feeding them to small cat-like civits or large elephants only to collect them again at the other end of the digestive process sounded unappetizing and cruel to Edgar Salgado – even if it produces a less bitter beverage that consumers are willing to pay upwards of $100 a pound. 
  
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