Culinary

While many books address specific aspects of food safety, no other book guides you through the various risks associated with each sector of the production process or alerts you to the measures needed to mitigate those risks. Using practical examples of incidents and their root causes, this book highlights pitfalls in food safety management and provides key insight into the means of avoiding them. Each section addresses its subject in terms of relevance and application to food safety and, where applicable, spoilage. It covers all types of risks (e.g., microbial, chemical, physical) associated with each step of the food chain.

Food safety is a matter of intense public concern, and for good reason. Millions of annual cases of food "poisonings" raise alarm not only about the food served in restaurants and fast-food outlets but also about foods bought in supermarkets. The introduction of genetically modified foods--immediately dubbed "Frankenfoods"--only adds to the general sense of unease. Finally, the events of September 11, 2001, heightened fears by exposing the vulnerability of food and water supplies to attacks by bioterrorists. .

The reported statistics on foodborne illness alone from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are cause for concern; the annual cost from medical bills and lost job productivity is estimated between 10 and 83 billion dollars. Every year there are 1,000 disease outbreaks, 48 million people (1 out of 6) infected, 128,000 hospitalizations, and 3,000 deaths are attributed to consuming contaminated food--and what is unreported can only be left to a disturbing speculation. The other part of the story is how disease-causing food happens, which sometimes crosses the line of integrity and is rarely put into print until it is too late.When people purchase food, there is a reasonable expectation that it will not make them sick. However, drug-resistant and emerging strains of bacteria, food recalls, cross-contamination, undeclared allergens, improper holding temperatures, pest infestation, inconsistent cleaning and sanitizing of food contact surfaces, lack of training, and infected food handlers are a constant threat to food contamination and personal liability.

In Food Fray, esteemed molecular biologist Dr. Lisa H. Weasel brings readers into the center of this debate, capturing the real-life experiences of the scientists, farmers, policymakers and grassroots activists on the front lines. Here she combines solid scientific knowledge and a gripping narrative to tell the real story behind the headlines and the hype. Seminal and cutting-edge, Food Fray enlightens and informs and will allow readers to make up their own minds about one of the most important issues facing us today.

This book discusses several topics on food issues, policies, and safety. The topics include legal issues with federal labeling of genetically engineered food; revisions of nutrition facts label; the U.S. wine industry and selected trade issue with the European Union; U.S. catfish industry and foreign trade; nut consumption among U.S. adults; consumer response to foodborne disease outbreaks of different severities; food safety performance of ground beef suppliers to the national school lunch program; and shelf-stable food safety.

This ABC News program begins with an overview of the controversial new type of crop hybridization known as genetic modification, exploring why the technology has panicked European consumers and has left many American farmers with mixed feelings. Then, correspondent John Donvan moderates a vigorous discussion between Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman; Val Giddings, Vice President of Food and Agriculture at the Biotechnology Industry Organization; and vociferous anti-biotechnology activist Jeremy Rifkin, who debate the value of government and industry testing and the need for package labeling.

The perfect guide for anyone who wants to know more about genetically modified crops -- and why they're a problem

This book investigates the corporate dominance of the world's seed supply. The seed is nature's gift and the first link in the food chain. This life form is becoming the exclusive intellectual property of the corporation. The advent of genetically modified seeds and strict patent protection accorded to them enable companies to own the seed even after the farmer has bought, planted, and harvested the seed. Multinational corporations have a monopoly control over seeds and the accompanying pesticides which is leading to monocultures in the food system and the disappearance of traditional methods of farming. Local producers are forced to buy seeds each year, thereby fostering a feudalistic relationship of perpetual dependence. An imbalance of power has emerged and farmers are transformed from producers to consumers by these new arrangements. The leap to embrace biotechnology and genetically modified foods has been quite swift and conducted without the public's knowledge. The food that our stomachs ingest may be increasingly bad for us. Case studies from four developing countries are presented for consideration.

To many scientists, gene technology is just another agricultural tool to help us grow bigger and better crops and livestock. But to others, like environmentalists and consumer advocates, the genetic manipulation of the plants and animals we eat poses huge risks that might not be worth taking. This program explores both sides of this controversial debate as it highlights specific ways in which genes have been manipulated to alter a plant's or animal's characteristics. These include the creation of crops that resist the use of herbicides or have built-in insecticides, potatoes that don't spoil, and rice with the potential to protect eyesight. We examine the facts behind some concerns about gene technology's potential impact on human health and the environment, exploring how new food-labeling laws in Australia provide additional information for those who wish to avoid eating genetically modified material.

Part one of Emerging food packaging technologies focuses on developments in active packaging, reviewing controlled release packaging, active antimicrobials and nanocomposites in packaging, and edible chitosan coatings. Part two goes on to consider intelligent packaging and how advances in the consumer/packaging interface can improve food safety and quality. Developments in packaging material are analysed in part three, with nanocomposites, emerging coating technologies, light-protective and non-thermal process packaging discussed, alongside a consideration of the safety of plastics as food packaging materials. Finally, part four explores the use of eco-design, life cycle assessment, and the utilisation of bio-based polymers in the production of smarter, environmentally-compatible packaging.

Using a clever news report approach, this program addresses three important topics: packaging materials and their function, safety, and design; innovation in packaging techniques; and environmental issues involving packaging, with an emphasis on plastics. Experts from Heinz and Cryovac, among others, discuss packaging development while making sense of key industry terms such as modified atmosphere and active and aseptic packaging.

The first objective of this title is to provide detailed and comprehensible information about packaging materials. Food Operators and Official Inspectors are not accustomed to understanding similar concepts (chemical and physical properties, marketing, QC failures). Consequently, a descriptive approach will be used to explain the world of packaging materials, differences between various packaging categories/subclasses and regulatory implications (REACH, BRC-IoP, etc.). The second objective is to provide the reader with a detailed selection of food failures and different causes: The incorrect design of package materials, or The incorrect storage and use of package materials, or Lack of technical information, or Synergetic effects (packaging & food-related causes). Every situation is described and analysed with the aim to provide a reliable diagnosis of the problem (microbial spreading, alteration of shelf-life values, unpleasant appearance, possible safety problems).

During the past decade, tremendous growth has occurred in the use of nutrition symbols and rating systems designed to summarize key nutritional aspects and characteristics of food products. These symbols and the systems that underlie them have become known as front-of-package (FOP) nutrition rating systems and symbols, even though the symbols themselves can be found anywhere on the front of a food package or on a retail shelf tag. Though not regulated and inconsistent in format, content, and criteria, FOP systems and symbols have the potential to provide useful guidance to consumers as well as maximize effectiveness.

This new edition of Innovations in Food Packaging ensures that readers have the most current information on food packaging options, including active packaging, intelligent packaging, edible/biodegradable packaging, nanocomposites and other options for package design. Today's packaging not only contains and protects food, but where possible and appropriate, it can assist in inventory control, consumer education, increased market availability and shelf life, and even in ensuring the safety of the food product. As nanotechnology and other technologies have developed, new and important options for maximizing the role of packaging have emerged.

The value of the groceries purchases in the USA is over $500 billion annually, most of which is accounted for by packaged foods. Plastic packaging of foods is not only ubiquitous in developed economies, but increasingly commonplace in the developing world, where plastic packaging is instrumental in decreasing the proportion of the food supply lost to spoilage.