184 | Lab Smashed Up in Food Fraud Scandal | Food Safety Competition |
Plus, deja-vu: peanut proteins in garlic powder
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Food Safety News and Resources;
Competition: Food Safety Treasure Hunt;
Food fraud news, emerging issues and recent incidents.
Hello lovely readers!
It’s a short and busy work week for many of us, so I thought I would keep this edition fun and easy to read with a competition.
Unravel the clues and find the treasure to win a cute food safety mug.
Three winners will be drawn from the first ten correct entries (to account for time zones).
The treasure hunt dominates this week’s issue but you’ll also find my usual weekly food safety news and resources roundup, with interesting research about the survival of bird flu in raw milk cheese. And as always, there’s food fraud news for paying subscribers.
This week’s food fraud news is mega. It also contains disheartening news about a food lab that was smashed up and had all its expensive equipment stolen.
Have a wonderful Easter, if that’s your thing. And enjoy the treasure hunt. I sure had fun making it.
Karen
P.S. Shout out to Kerry, from a food-safe consumables supplier, who just became a paying subscriber 👏👏 Thank you for your support 👏👏 I couldn’t make this newsletter without people like you.
Food Safety News and Resources
If you’re new here, my food safety news roundups are where I share unusual recalls, large outbreaks, new research, guidance papers and free webinars without overloading this email or clogging up your inbox.
I got deja-vu from an alert about peanut contamination in garlic powder this week - the same thing happened a few years ago, and it was (probably) due to food fraud in the garlic supply chain.
This week’s news also features interesting results for bird flu survival in hard cheeses and a new warning related to radionucleotides in seafood in this week’s food safety news update. Plus more.
Click the preview below to read.
Food Safety Treasure Hunt
Follow the clues around the town to discover hidden treasure
How to play
You and your team are in the main square of a small town, about to embark on a treasure hunt. The town has a delicatessen, a chocolate factory, a lettuce farm, a sausage-maker/butchers shop, fresh food markets and a restaurant.
Every place you visit has a hidden clue. Each clue leads you to the next location.
To enter, complete the treasure hunt, then send me a list of the places you visited in the correct order. Three winners will be chosen from the first ten correct entries. Entries close 12:00 pm GMT, Friday 18th April (Easter Friday for most).
Winners receive a food safety champion mug.
HINT: The number of locations visited is between 2 and 6. Each location is visited once only.
Start: Main square
In the main square you receive your first clue. It says:
Allergen controls are important at all food sites, but allergen awareness in front-line staff is critical to protect customers at this type of place. Allergen-related failures by the supplier of a facility like this were the root cause of a death we examined in Issue 123.
When you get to the site, check that cook temperatures are sufficient for pathogen inactivation.
***Scroll/skip forward to the site revealed by the clue***
Delicatessen
At the deli, you find a clue in the bread display. It says:
Next you should go to a place that’s quite dynamic, You might find ‘organic’ food that’s not really organic, Or smoothies made with raw frozen berries (with hepatitis E, norovirus and other adversaries!) Perhaps you’ll find no hand wash sinks, And insects on the sausage links, But amid the risks, there’s joy to be found, Fresh produce, cheeses and pastries abound.
When you get to that place, seek out the sausages.
***Scroll/skip forward or back to the site revealed by the clue***
Chocolate factory
When you arrive at the chocolate factory, go to the raw material store and find a clue that reveals where to go next. It says:
Skilled food safety inspectors will pay close attention to a certain piece of machinery or appliance when they visit a site like this.
The machine must be completely dismantled, scrubbed clean and sanitised daily to prevent the build-up of biofilms of Listeria and Salmonella. This type of machinery is thought to have been a contributing factor in the recent Boar’s Head outbreak, as it may have transferred pathogens from contaminated liverwurst to non-contaminated foods. It was also instrumental in the famous Maple Leaf Foods listeriosis outbreak of 2008.
Go to the place that has that piece of machinery and also has bread. When you get there, look for a clue near the bread.
***Scroll/skip forward or back to the site revealed by the clue***
Lettuce farm
You arrive at the lettuce farm. Attached to the fence, you find a clue to lead you to your next destination. It says:
Go to the place where you can expect to find sodium nitrate, an additive used to prevent the growth of Clostridium botulinum in certain types of food.
When you get to that place, check the calibration of the scales.
***Scroll/skip forward or back to the site revealed by the clue***
Sausage-maker and butcher’s shop
You arrive at the sausage maker’s shop and discover they make fermented meat sausages like salami and Kransky. Near the weigh scales, you discover a clue about where to go next. It says:
Salmonella has a hidden quirk,
In dry foods it can stay and lurk.
High-fat foods, with moisture low,
Can harbour it for a year or so.
Through lecithin, it gets inside
Our Easter foods, where it can abide.
Recalls a-plenty in 2022,
Proof that suppliers are risky too. When you get to that place, look for the lecithin.
(Hint: If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, Issue 33 and Issue 45 will help)
***Scroll/skip forward or back to the site revealed by the clue***
Fresh food market
At the markets, you go to the sausage stall(s) and find another clue. It says:
This hunt has many lessons to applaud, From sodium nitrate to organic fraud. Salmonella thrives where moisture is low, In chocolate or nuts, it’s a hidden foe. Listeria lurks where slicers aren’t clean, A deadly outbreak that we’ve all seen. Frozen berries can carry disease, Norovirus hitchhikes with surprising ease. Allergens too demand our care, A peanut trace can lead to despair. Restaurants must clean and plan, To protect each guest with a careful hand. Irrigation water tells its tale, Pathogens persist where systems fail. From E. coli to Cryptosporidium’s might, Clean water ensures crops grow right. The treasure you seek is safe food for all, From farm to factory, big or small. So let this hunt end with wisdom in hand— Safer food in every land.
Your hunt ends here. The treasure: safe food for everyone.
Now it’s time to enjoy the sights and smells of the market, buy some fresh produce and have a raw food smoothie (or not!). Enjoy.
***Scroll/skip forward or back to the site revealed by the clue***
Restaurant
You arrive at the restaurant. While checking the cook temperatures, you find a clue to lead you to your next destination. It says:
In water that flows or stands still, Pathogens can lurk and can kill. Test water with care, Keep it clean and fair— Safe salads depend on your skill.
Use the clue to decide which location to visit next.
When you arrive there, check that there are systems to keep wild animals and birds from coming into contact with the food.
Did you find the treasure?
Were you able to follow the clues to visit the sites in the correct order and find the treasure?
Find out next week when I share the answer.
To win
Be among the first ten entrants to submit the correct locations in the correct order (2 to 6 locations) to win a food safety mug. Example: butcher’s shop, market, lettuce farm.
To submit, simply reply to this email or write to me at therottenapple@substack.com. Entries close 12:00 pm GMT, Friday 18th April (Easter Friday for most).
Below for paying subscribers: Food fraud news, emerging risks and incident reports
📌 Food Fraud News 📌
In this week’s food fraud news:
📌 Lab smashed: Links to organised crime in honey?
📌 Greenwashing standard published;
📌 Analytical methods for dairy, oils, fish, poultry, coriander;
📌 Warnings for poultry imports, soy, corn and reports of fraud in butter, eggs, snapper and more.
Organised criminals allegedly smash up the lab that revealed widespread honey fraud in Serbia
Wow. A recent post on LinkedIn and its comments allege that organised crime group(s) have destroyed a food lab in Serbia weeks after its tests revealed widespread fraud in imported honey in that country.
For anyone who thinks food fraud is not big money or high stakes, this story should prompt a rethink.
Here are the details,