The State News, the student newspaper of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, today reports that students on MSU’s meal plan craving a hamburger or sausage patty will have to look elsewhere.

The story says that the university has pulled all ground beef products from cafeterias in response to a call from its meat supplier, who is testing its beef for E. coli contamination.

According to an Oct. 5 report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 32 cases of foodborne illnesses under investigation in eight states. No cases were under investigation in Michigan.

Mike Rice, director of Auxiliary Services, was cited as saying pulling the ground beef was a voluntary effort. No beef shipped to MSU has been proven to be contaminated with E. coli.

“Whatever it takes to keep the beef safe, that’s what we’ve got to do,” Rice was quoted as saying.

Vennie Gore, assistant vice president for Housing and Food Services, was cited as saying that he expects the testing to be complete in the next few days.

Until then, chicken burgers and other alternatives will replace the ground beef products.
“We’d rather be safe than sorry,” Gore added.

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Elizabeth Lee today reports in the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that to discourage people from drinking raw milk, the Georgia Department of Agriculture is proposing dyeing it charcoal gray.

The story says that raw milk can be sold as pet food in Georgia, if it is labeled appropriately. But it's no secret that people buy the unpasteurized milk to drink themselves, to give to their children or to use in cheese-making.

The department, which notified pet dairy farmers of proposed changes Sept. 24, is said to be committed to making the change, although it is asking for comments through Oct. 24 and will make its decision Oct. 25.

Last month, the Greensboro News and Record reported on a new rule approved by the state Board of Agriculture in North Carolina outlining that unpasteurized milk sold as pet food must be dyed a charcoal-gray color and labeled as not for human consumption. The story explained that the charcoal color was chosen to clearly differentiate the product from standard milk and make raw milk unappealing to children.

Will charcoal dyeing catch on in other states where raw milk sales are permitted for animal consumption - Florida? Indiana?

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The Topeka Capital-Journal has reminded its readers that children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems shouldn’t be served unpasteurized apple juice or other unpasteurized products, such as apple cider.

As with raw milk, there are many people who seek unpasteurized juice and cider on the misguided belief that the more natural the food, the better -- tastier, healthier, and safer.

However, due to outbreaks of salmonellosis, E. coli, cryptosporidiosis, cholera and other serious illnesses from unpasteurized juices and apple cider, the FDA requires that virtually all fruit and vegetable juice producers follow HACCP controls using technologies such as heat pasteurization or UV treatment. All apple cider sold in the US, other than sales directly to consumers by producers, must be produced using HACCP principles to achieve a 5-log reduction in pathogens.

So, if you happen to come along a roadside stand, or a shack with a fridge full of unpasteurized apple cider while touring country roads and enjoying fall's splendor, don't be tempted. It doesn't matter how much you like the person selling the product, be informed that consumption (without boiling) carries a risk of foodborne illness. And please, avoid serving unpasteurized products to those most at risk -- your children.

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Julie Scelfo reports in the Sept. 24, 2007 issue of Newsweek that the boom in restaurants serving local organic produce has come with an unexpected downside: more bugs in our food (you don't say). She writes that without pesticides to deter them, aphids, ladybugs, caterpillars and beetles are tagging along on the journey from farm to kitchen to dinner table with greater frequency. But the reactions among diners, she says, are as diverse as the critters they're finding on their plates.


Some are said to be furious, especially considering they're paying more for organic food (a lot more) — but a surprising number are cheered. To those customers, Scelfo writes that such uninvited guests are proof that the produce really is fresh and pesticide-free.


Ben Long, a communications consultant and foodie from Kalispell, Mont, is quoted as saying "I, for one, would much prefer a bug on my plate to pesticide in my bloodstream."


And sometimes it's more than just a bug, the story continues. When Richard Samaniego, chef at California's Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, opened a box of organic lettuce last year, a frog jumped out. He was quoted as saying, "It was a good thing I found it before we started chopping."

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As a public service, the Manhattan Mercury in Manhattan, Kansas, home of iFSN at Kansas State University, publishes a weekly list of findings by the food service inspector at the local health department.

This week's area food inspections report for the week ending August 12 includes results for Applebee's, Tanks Tavern, and Sonic Drive In.

The paper emphasizes that the findings should be seen as a snapshot of conditions existing at the exact time of the inspection rather than as a reflection of the permanent conditions in an establishment.

The report for Tanks Tavern (712 N. Manhattan Ave), a new addition to the bar scene in Aggieville has to be my favourite. On August 2, in response to a complaint inspection, two critical violations were noted: 1. No handsink in bar area; 2. Found live dog in bar and dog food stored under sink. Four non-critical violations were also noted and a follow-up inspection was required.

Prior to the tavern's opening at the end of January, tavern owner, Brett Allred told the Kansas State Collegian that the Tavern's mascot, Tank, a pitbull mix, would be at the bar at all times -- guess not.

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The UK's Register reports today that one of America's oldest grocers has sued two college students for licking its produce on YouTube.

According to the story, last week, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Company - A&P - slapped a $1 million lawsuit on former employees Mark and Matthew D'Avella, accusing the two of defaming the 147-year-old grocery chain in an online rap video called "Produce Paradise."

According to the suit - filed in New Jersey superior court and recently tracked down by an El Reg hack desperate for a good read - the video shows the brothers doing various disparaging and disgusting things inside the Califon, New Jersey A&P where they worked as shelf stockers before getting the sack six days ago. An A&P spokesperson is cited as saying that at least one customer is extremely miffed by the video, which has the rappers licking packaged produce and putting it back on the selling shelf - among other things.

With their "Produce Paradise" video - available on YouTube as well as their personal website - the D'Avellas spend 4 minutes and 16 seconds rapping about, well, produce. Billing themselves as the "Fresh Beets," they lay down rhymes like "Produce. Produce. What you see is what you get, except the cut fruit, now that's some nasty s##t" and "Excuse me sir, where did this grow? B###h, do I look Mexican, I don't know." In addition to licking some fruits and vegetables, they seem to urinate on others. "But don't come up to me acting all rude because I won't be afraid to pee in your food," they chant.

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While Doug sits patiently on a plane bound for Australia, the Age reports today that a virulent strain of gastroenteritis is expected to infect tens of thousands of Australians in the coming months.

Viral experts are cited as saying the outbreak of highly infectious norovirus will cause a second wave of sick leave on the back of the current influenza epidemic.

This year's strain, which has already spread through Europe, is more contagious than last year's gastro bug, and has already been linked to outbreaks and visitor bans at some hospitals in Queensland, Adelaide and NSW.

Virologist Peter White, from the University of NSW, is quoted as saying, "We are seeing a wave of multiple outbreaks that is already spreading across Australia."

The virus is expected to hit hardest in crowded environments like childcare centres, nursing homes and hospitals, Dr White was further cited as saying.

Public health experts are said to be puzzled by the random periodic emergence of new strains which cause rapid-fire outbreaks before suddenly vanishing again.

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In June, WABC New York, reported that mice had invaded a trendy yogurt shop, Pinkberry, at 82nd Street and Second Avenue -- and they had exclusive video of the mice running around on the shop floor.

At the time, one passerby told news reporters, "I was in the restaurant industry so there were mice everywhere so I'm kinda used to it." Yuck!

Today, the Nation's Restaurant News reports on Dane Morrissey's, area director for 4sunkids inc., Pinkberry’s New York franchisee, 'no mouse in the house' strategy to keeping the little critters out. Morrissey was quoted as saying, "You can be spotless, but if you don’t remove the access points, they can still come in. We opened every cabinet and pulled out everything from the wall. Every outlet was checked. Every pipe was sealed. Gaps around the doors were filled with weather stripping.”

Morrissey was also cited as saying, the mice incident did not bite into business at the super-busy chain.

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In today's LA Times, Will Daniels, who oversees food safety at Earthbound Farm laments on the 2006 spinach outbreak that killed three people and sickened 200 others. He shares with reporter Marla Clone the steps the company is taking to make sure pathogens don't end-up on consumers' plates.

According to the story, all of Earthbound Farms greens are now checked for pathogens, from seed to sale. Each lot is tested twice -- upon arrival from a farm, and again when packaged products roll off processing lines. In the year since the E. coli outbreak, the company has subjected about 120 million pounds of salad greens to new testing methods at a cost of several million dollars.

The story explains that on Oct. 2, just 18 days after the spinach outbreak was discovered, Earthbound Farms launched a "test and hold" system in San Juan Bautista. Since the program began, 58 out of about 76,000 lots entering Earthbound's plants in San Juan Bautista and Yuma, Ariz., have tested positive for pathogens, a rate of 0.0008%, which amounts to about 93,000 pounds of greens destroyed out of about 122 million pounds that growers sent to Earthbound in the last 10 1/2 months.

Tests for finished products were said to have been added in February, and so far no packaged greens have failed. But Mansour Samadpour, the company's hired food safety microbiologist predicts that four of Earthbound's finished lots, nearly 4 tons, will test positive every year, most often in summer.

Despite what sounds like impressive testing procedures, the story goes on to note some skepticism, including questions over the accuracy of testing techniques and lab errors that may give producers a false sense of security. Trevor Suslow, a UC Davis microbial food safety specialist, tells Cone he has mixed feelings about whether extensive testing should occur at every plant. More important, he is cited as saying, is to ensure that growers, processors, truckers and stores all have well-designed programs to minimize pathogens. However, Michael Doyle, the industries most vocal critic was quoted as saying, "I believe that Earthbound is now the industry leader in providing food safety interventions to fresh-cut salads. The rest of the industry would be well-advised to follow Earthbound's lead."

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