Food Safety News and Resources | March
March 2025
10 March | Food Safety News and Free Resources1 |
Recall: sauce due to foaming (USA) |
Recall: vegetables for botulism risk (USA) |
Recall: cat food due to bird flu (USA) |
Recall for food dyes (USA) |
Bird flu in rats (USA) |
Illegal pesticides found in spaza shop (South Africa)) |
Urine on food – one person charged (USA) |
Webinar – Effective Strategies for Food Safety Culture, 11th March |
Webinar - Securing Management and Employee Buy-In for Effective Food Safety Training, 25th April |
⚠ Recall: sauce due to foaming (USA)
Garlic parmesan wing sauce has been recalled after consumers complained of foaming when bottles were opened. The foaming could indicate the presence of dangerous bacteria.
⚠ Recall: vegetables for botulism risk (USA)
Vegetable-based products sold in sealed plastic pouches have been recalled over botulism concerns. The packages did not state “Keep Refrigerated”.
⚠ Recall: cat food due to bird flu (USA)
Two indoor domestic cats have been infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) with one cat needing to be euthanized due to the severity of the illness. The cats are suspected to have contracted the disease from raw pet food, with the pet food subject to a recall by the Washington State Deparment of Agriculture. There is a risk to pet owners who can contract the diease from their pets.
🖌 Recall for food dyes (USA)
Snack mix was recalled for undeclared food dyes Yellow No. 5, Yellow No. 6, and Red No. 6 and other allergens.
🐀 Bird flu in rats (USA)
Black rats were tested by the USDA for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and four rats tested positive. Rats present a high risk for transmission of the virus to people because of their proximity to people, their pets and farm animals.
https://www.qualityassurancemag.com/news/usda-confirms-bird-flu-detected-in-four-rats-in-california/
🛑 Illegal pesticides found in spaza shop (South Africa)
The large number of chemical food poisonings that have occurred in South Africa in past months have been blamed on pesticides in spaza shops.
Officials confiscated pesticides that are illegal, packaged in bottles and sachets from a spaza shop during a raid. A meat product that did not have the address of the manufacturer was also confiscated.
🧪 Urine on food – one person charged (USA)
A 23-year-old content creator has been charged after complaints about a video which showed them contaminating bulk food items in a store with urine. It is thought that the person had been committing similar crimes since 2021.
🎓 Webinar – Effective Strategies for Food Safety Culture, 11th March
During this webinar, attendees will:
Recognize common challenges in food manufacturing change management, such as employee resistance and siloed thinking, and understand their impact on food safety culture transformations
Learn strategies for assessing and improving FSC within organizations, and gain insights on culture evaluation and enhancement to overcome obstacles
Gain practical knowledge on successful FSC change programs and transformation journeys from real-world experiences, enabling attendees to navigate challenges and achieve lasting improvements in their FSC initiatives
🎓 Webinar - Securing Management and Employee Buy-In for Effective Food Safety Training, 25th April
In this webinar, IFSQN will highlight the pivotal role of securing buy-in from both management and employees to ensure the success of food safety training initiatives.
Register here: Securing Management & Employee Buy-In for Effective Food Safety Traini
In this week’s food fraud news:
📌 Olive oil test methods;
📌 Computational modelling for food safety risks from food fraud;
📌 Cupuaçu authenticity;
📌 (Not) organic ricotta, coffee and cocoa bean smuggling, counterfeit seeds, stolen avocadoes and more.
3 March | Food Safety News and Free Resources |
Massive egg recall (Norway) |
Mystery Listeria deaths solved (USA) |
Global recall/withdrawal of guar gum |
Fish PFAS recall/withdrawal (Egypt, Ireland) |
Webinar - Food Safety Essentials: Navigating Chemical Contaminants in Your Safety Plan, 20th March |
Webinar - Food Tech, Digital Transformation and AI, 25th March |
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⚠ Massive egg recall (Norway)
Six hundred tons of eggs have been recalled after too much vitamin D was added to chicken feed. Affected eggs could contain up to 300 micrograms of vitamin D, while the safe daily intake is less than 100 micrograms for adults. Pigs have also been given the tainted feed and there have been reports that 300 to 500 pigs were culled and that up to 300 pigs had already been processed for human food before the alarm was raised.
The overdosing occurred due to a miscalculation at the feed manufacturer.
https://www.animalfeedmea.com/2025/02/20/norway-recalls-600-tons-of-eggs-over-vitamin-d-overdose-in-feed/ and https://wataha.no/en/2025/02/07/ostrzezenie-dla-konsumentow-nortura-i-coop-wycofuja-jaja-ze-sprzedazy-z-powodu-zagrozenia-zdrowia/
💀 Mystery Listeria deaths solved (USA)
In January’s Food Safety News, we reported on a mystery Listeria outbreak that had sickened at least 34 people but that had not been linked with any foods.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now reported on an outbreak of listeriosis that it became aware of in November 2024 and which it says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has linked to cases dating back to 2018. The FDA says 38 people have been affected, with 37 hospitalised and 12 deaths.
Most of the victims were either residents of long-term care facilities or had been in hospital prior to their illnesses. Nutritional shakes have been linked to the outbreak and two brands of shakes are being recalled. Environmental swabbing at the manufacturer revealed Listeria monocytogenes bacteria that are a close genetic match to the illness strain.
⚠ Global withdrawal of guar gum
Mineral oil aromatic hydrocarbon (MOAH) has been discovered in refined guar gum from Pakistan during a company’s check in the Netherlands. The material was distributed in 22 countries worldwide and has been flagged for recall or withdrawal.
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/notification/747699
🦦Withdrawal of fish for PFAS (Egypt)
Horse mackerel from Ireland has been withdrawn from the market in Egypt after government testing revealed it contained PFAS compounds at a concentration of 50 µg/kg, which is more than 4 times the allowed maximum of 8 µg/kg.
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/notification/747493
🎓Webinar - Food Safety Essentials: Navigating Chemical Contaminants in Your Safety Plan, 20th March
Nestlé is hosting a webinar to provide an overview of common chemical contaminants that can enter food products during harvesting and production and key points for controlling them in your food safety plan.
🎓Webinar - Food Tech, Digital Transformation and AI, 25th March
Join New Food for an insightful webinar on the cutting-edge impact of food tech, digital transformation, and AI. Explore how these innovations reshape food safety, supply chains, and the industry's future.
Register here: Food tech, digital transformation & AI - New Food Magazine
In this week’s food fraud news:
📌 Fraud in herbal extracts;
📌 Horizon scanning: European food and ag policy for 2025 and beyond;
📌 Cocoa warning, egg crisis;
📌 Palm oil adulteration, herbal tea with undeclared pharmaceuticals, olive oil fraud.
Past Issues of Food Safety News
Food Safety News, February 2025
Food Safety News, January 2025
Food Safety News, December 2024