Filtering by Tag: FDA

Food Safety Talk 176: Bug Book

Added on February 21, 2019 by Don Schaffner.

The show opens with a discussion about privacy, whether you should cover the microphone on your computer, or how you can scare your kids using Alexa. The guys talked briefly about what they're watching, Ben's trip to Athens Georgia, and celebrity feet. From there the show moves into listener feedback talking about the safety of eating Canadian seaweed. Listener feedback makes a interesting segue into failure, and the things we can learn from it. The show returns to listener feedback with a discussion about citrus safety and infused water. For some reason Don wants to talk about smoke detectors, before returning again to listener feedback and "Contamination Corner", and ways to learn about stuff you don't know about (like filibusters). Ben and Don talk about an interview that Don did for Cooking Light, before Don wants to talk about fixing his broken software. Ben ends the show with a long discussion regarding safe cooking directions for frozen vegetables, and why no one can agree. Show notes so you can follow along at home are below:

Food Safety Talk 76: Get 'em really hot

Added on May 14, 2015 by Ben Chapman.

This episode starts with a discussion of Ben’s taste in music, and then quickly moves into documentaries. Ben recently watched Jodorowsky’s Dune, on Don’s recommendation. This documentary has some ‘artful nudity’ that leads to a discussion of perverts on airplanes and the appropriateness of reading material such as Fifty Shades of Grey while crammed into an airplane seat. The conversation naturally transitioned into a discussion of microphone stands and coffee. Ben notes that owning a Nespresso machine has changed his life; he ranks it among his top 10 life changing things (including his wife and children). The guys then discuss other pop-culture topics including Deflate-Gate and TV shows The Affair, Portlandia (which had an episode satirizing raw milk), and Garfunkel and Oates. Note that Portlandia is required viewing before attending IAFP 2015 in Portland this summer

Ben leads off the actual food safety talk by mentioning sprouts and the number of outbreaks associated with them. The guys then discuss experiments to validate sprout cooking processes including charred bean sprouts. Ben then brings up the idea of baking cookies in a car and a visit from Linda Harris (who now downloads and listens). From there the talk turns to pathogen reduction validations for baking processes spurred by the Wegmans recall of baked fruit desserts last summer, presumably because they contained peaches recalled for Listeria.

The FDA’s Reportable Food Registry, along with CDC whole genome sequencing of pathogens, is enabling more illnesses to be linked to products, as seen in Salmonella Braenderup linked to nut butter. Ben predicts more businesses will have to issue recalls because of validation issues, and the investigations that accompany these recalls will isolate pathogens from within facilities that can be linked to other illnesses which have occurred over months and years prior.

The discussion then turns to the very bad blizzard that New Jersey never had. Don discusses the similarities between the models for weather forecasting and models in food safety. Both situations have consequences for over or under reacting; both present risk management and risk communication difficulties.

A tweet from The New Yorker made Don mad: Bill Marler may be all that stands between you and Salmonella. This resulted in Don tweeting back to The New Yorker. Ben mentioned it was probably just Betteridge’s Law of Headlines. Bill Marler is probably not all that stands between you and Salmonella; as there are a few more people trying to do the right thing. The guys then go on to discuss how Marler and Caroline Smith DeWaal, a lawyer with the Center for Science in the Public Interest, have become controversial but generally respected food safety personalities over the years.

Don recently was quoted in an article about the safety of various cuts of meat (and Barfblogged here). Don and Ben were so happy Don was quoted correctly, they were able to ‘ding’ their podcast bell; a auditory high-five.

Pork has a reputation for being dangerous but decreases in the prevalence of Trichinella and Americans tendency to overcook pork have reduced the actual risk, so Ben wanted to discuss a recent MMWR Trichinellosis report. Don mentions ‘The Batz Report’ which determined the top 10 pathogen-food combinations with the greatest burden in public health. This led to a discussion of sample size, detection limits, consumption rates, and risk messaging, leading to the conclusion that cultural practices in food preparation adds complexity to the determination of risk.

Food Safety Talk 17: Blood, Sugar, Nakaochi Scrape, Magik

Added on May 9, 2012 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben talk about bands that usually don't suck (but sometimes do), alternatives to conferences where the audience is talked at (although that's not always bad) and salmonellosis linked to meat scraped from the backbone of tuna.

Ben's favorite Red Hot Chili Peppers album, which he was listening to prior to the recording.
One of Don's new listens (and a guy from Canada, whom, of course, Ben knows - because everyone in Canada knows each other): Jim Dalrymple/The Loop.
One of those bands who cranks out good radio singles but their albums have been disappointing to the dudes.
Sometimes cheeses from Quebec have food safety issues.
Ben's drug of choice, the venti triple latte.
Food safety summit, where Ben was prior to the podcast.
Conference for Food Protection, Where Don was prior to the podcast.
David Tharp, the Tupac of food safety.
Ben knows a roundtable when he sees one, just like pornography.
A talk Ben gave via Skype.
What people who view or give webinars might look like.
CDC report of Salmonella in sushi product-linked outbreak investigation.
Moon Marine USA Corp's FDA recall.
Nakaochi scrape, what some have called tuna's pink slime.
Ben's food safety infosheet on the sushi outbreak (that Don so graciously reviewed).
Sushi eaters rejoice, slime from india (from barfblog).
An outbreak where a tiny bit of contamination became a big issue, spreading from a central location.
Mike Doyle who doesn't eat bagged lettuce, and his big purple teal gloves.
Dried spices, at some point all have been on a mule somewhere.
Bumblefish Sushi sent a letter to Rutgers that the guys thought was good.
Where Ben and Don said that supplier names eventually come out (here or here).
Where fixing the "when and how to go public" goes.
What the food supply chain might look like.
In the post-show, Don and Ben figure out how to create a social media food safety conference. They decided they would get one of these (or these).
4 day throwaway from UNL.

Food Safety Talk 17: Blood, Sugar, Nakaochi Scrape, Magik

Food Safety Talk 5: A Medley of Fleetwood Mac

Added on November 9, 2011 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben are back in the same time zone and talk a lot about cantaloupe. The episode starts off with a bit of nerdy discussion about Apple products and upgrading to iOS 5. But then the guys talk about food safety, outbreak investigations, social media and messaging. The podcast is available here.

The muse who Don spoke with.
Food safety's Weird Al, Carl Winter.
The band that Ben suggests stringing 6 seconds of multiple songs together for the bump.
FDA's report of finding one of the three outbreak strains at Jensen Farms.
Like Bryan Adams, Celine Dion and Alan Thicke - Canada has brought the world notable things, including Listeria in fresh produce.
Our good friend, who has said that sheep are used as weed control between crops.
What hydrocooler might look like.
Listeria dose/response in RTE foods.
What a cantaloupe encrusted with animal feces might look like.
The Finnish butter outbreak.
High fat in chocolate and peanut products has a protective effect on Salmonella.
Don and Michelle's pathogenic E. coli in leafy greens modelling work.
A YouTube video of a cantaloupe packing line with the worlds greatest music
Importance of having chlorine in your wash water when processing leafy greens.
Absolutely, positively, Listeria-free cantaloupes on sale in Carborro, NC.
Zach Braff's shining moment, Garden State.
Edmonton's (which is on the outskirts of Canada) greatest time.
Don's Skype interview where he was referred to as Canadian.
Is a consumer really just a consumer?
Einstein's advice: "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler"
Don on NPR.
Food safety's small group (IAFP's membership is around 3000).
Our at least one listener.
Nerdy app that Ben likes and Don doesn't.
The competition that swamped Ben and Don with food safety questions from keen high school kids.
A really nerdy thing Ben participated in high school, and loved it.
The movie that Ben loved and felt that was the best social marketing for handwashing (that bordered on propaganda).
The agency that Ben feels does the best job of telling folks what they do.
Our friend who thinks Ben works at CDC.

A Medley of Fleetwood Mac