So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye
Given his youthful looks, I’m sure you’ll be surprised to hear that Terrence Collis is retiring today, and I couldn’t let the moment pass without thanking him for his contribution to the blog. We shall...
View ArticleMake every week Food Safety Week
Before Food Safety Week draws to a close I wanted to take the opportunity to get in one final reminder that it’s good to save money and avoid unnecessary food waste but not to economise with food...
View ArticleGastronomic perfection or hepatitis?
How do we get away from celebrity chefs and ‘foodies’ extolling the virtues of unsafe food hygiene practices? Yesterday’s Metro had a whole page dedicated to pork, with the frustrating advice from...
View ArticlePolicy on trial
How do we know whether a government policy really works? There’s a lot of expertise across government in evaluating policy or policy ideas. Recently, however, the Cabinet Office has been looking at...
View ArticleIs opening up data a Pandora’s box?
The Agency’s commitment to openness is one of our key values, so I was eager to read The Royal Society’s new report, Science as an open enterprise. The report highlights the need to grapple with the...
View ArticleBurgers: rare or well done?
Following my previous post about the dangers of eating raw pork, people have been asking whether it’s safe to eat burgers rare, or cooked with a ‘pink blush’ in the middle.The advice being given in...
View ArticleHigher, faster – and into the unknown
If you feel that this blog has been notable by its absence over the past few weeks, you would be correct. Like millions of other citizens I’ve been devoting my spare time to the study of aero-dynamics,...
View ArticleJK Rowling has competition: my annual report’s been published
JK Rowling may have just published another bestseller, but it’s a bit short on science content. If you’re interested in science, in particular science at the Food Standards Agency, why not take a look...
View ArticleWe need more Foxes and less foxiness
Many congratulations to Fiona Fox and her dedicated team of scientists at the Science Media Centre (SMC), which held its 10th anniversary at the Science Museum in London last night. Several speakers at...
View ArticleGM milk: are we going to bottle it?
We know that allergies can be a terrible blight on children’s lives, so I was interested to read that two to three percent of infants in developed countries are allergic to the proteins found in cows’...
View ArticleOff-target on lead-shot game
Rose Prince, in the Daily Telegraph, has chewed over FSA advice to frequent consumers of lead-shot game and come up with an un-digestible response. She says that ‘only an idiot would deliberately...
View ArticleTails you win: the science of chance
We are always careful to point out that there is no such thing as absolute safety in relation to food. As Benjamin Franklin said: 'The only certainties in life are death and taxes.' But if you would...
View ArticleManaging risk. Where now?
In Europe we enjoy some of the highest standards of food safety in the world, and to ensure that this continues will require a stronger EFSA and a stronger risk-assessment community. This was the view...
View ArticleFood fraud – the stark naked truth
You may have read about the Stark Naked Foods Ltd, which has been fined £23,500 plus costs for some bare-faced food fraud. Its pesto sauce was labelled as being made with extra virgin olive oil and...
View ArticleEvents, dear boy, events
I'm not prone to quoting politicians, but when Prime Minister Harold Macmillan (1957–1963) was asked about the greatest obstacle to political achievement he is said to have answered: 'Events, dear boy,...
View ArticleSixty-day loaf: That'll be the day!
Apparently there is something in the water in Lubbock, Texas. The city that gave us Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock, Joe Ely and, of course, the great Buddy Holly, has now given us Microzap, a...
View ArticleSéralini study 'not supported by data'
I wrote a few weeks ago about research by Séralini et al that raised concerns about the potential toxicity of genetically modified maize NK603 and of a herbicide containing glycophosate. You will find...
View ArticleScience talks across the pond
I was delighted to welcome Steve Musser, from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to the FSA recently. Steve, who is Director of the Office of Regulatory Science at the FDA's Center for Food...
View ArticleBeing transparent about risk and decisions
I welcome the publication today of a report agreed by the Heads of National Food Agencies in Europe (HoA) that looks at how to ensure that risk assessments are used consistently and transparently in...
View ArticleDon't splash out on a turkey
If you wash your turkey under a tap, bacteria already present on the meat can be splashed up to three feet from where the meat is washed. It seems rather Olympian. It’s certainly not to be ignored....
View ArticleWhat's your science book of the year?
Assessing information and making decisions that will improve consumer health in relation to food is what we are about in the FSA. We are proud to say that our decisions are evidence-based and we...
View ArticleFacing the facts on Campylobacter
You may have heard our Chief Executive Catherine Brown being interviewed on BBC radio 4’s Face the Facts programme earlier this week. Catherine was talking about Campylobacter and urging industry to...
View ArticleMaking horse sense of contaminated burgers
It has no doubt come as a surprise to members of the public that traces of horse meat and pig meat have been found in ‘100% beef burgers’ sold by a number of UK high street retailers and that in one...
View ArticleFSA goes viral
If you read my blog on campylobacter yesterday you might be interested to find out that we have also been working on another bug – Norovirus. Earlier this week, a range of national and international...
View ArticleFancy checking out our priorities?
The Agency has just published itsForward Evidence Plan for 2013. The plan outlines science and evidence priorities for the coming year, including potential areas for research funding.The proposals...
View ArticleFood safety: the Europe question
The FSA plays a key role in the EU, representing the UK's interests in terms of food safety. As part of the current debate on Europe, the Agency has issued a Europe-themed issue of its Bite magazine.It...
View ArticleHorsemeat in beef: sampling protocol published
The FSA has announced its sampling protocolfor a UK-wide survey of food authenticity in processed meat products. The aim of the survey, which is being carried out with local authority enforcement...
View ArticleDecontamination of bovine carcasses: the acid test
I was pleased to learn that the European Commission is to authorise the use of lactic acid for the surface decontamination of bovine carcasses, with effect from 25 February. The European Food Safety...
View ArticleHorsemeat: testing times for all
Thanks to everyone who commented on my 7 February blog on sampling for horsemeat in beef. If you go to the FSA website you will find tables containing results from the latest round of tests. In...
View ArticleIt’s not as simple as in CSI
As the horse meat issue continues to unfold I’ve been asked a number of times why we can’t simply use DNA techniques to test for all species in all products – and test for them quickly. I hope that...
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