Saber rattling

A story in today's LA Times takes another run at the topic of food safety research. The reporter penned this effective line on the lack of research on science based standards. "Without such specifics, FDA talk of regulations to protect consumers from more outbreaks.... may be little more than bureaucratic saber-rattling."
Of course, a spokesman for the Center for Science in the Public Interest doesn't want to see a one or two year delay in implementing new standards that might protect the public. The industry must balance the danger of false assumptions about food safety regulations with the urgency to act in the consumers' interest.

Chiquita's latest

This story talks about Chiquita's third quarter performance, which was highlighted by 8% growth in sales helped by higher banana prices in North America. However, the fresh spinach crisis weighed on the company's Fresh Express unit, despite the fact that none of the company's products was implicated. Overall, Chiquita's net sales rose to 8% to $1 billion but poor banana prices in the European market helped contribute to a net loss of $96 million for the quarter despite the company's ongoing cost saving initiatives. The lengthy analysis piece offers some insight on the Fresh Express dollar share for value added salads, which was put at 46% during the 13 week period ending Sept. 24. Chiquita also is growing with value added fruit, with the firm's Apple Bites reportedly showing a 49% value share. Chiquita is expanding distribution of Apple Bites and Chiquita Fruit Bowls, the article said. The firm is reported to be the third largest brand of fresh cut fruit, with a 12% national value share. The market likes the fact Chiquita is more diversified than it used to be, though with fresh produce nothing is ever easy.

Field study results

A November article in a research journal (PubMed) associated with the National Institutes of Health reports the results of a field study of the microbiological quality of domestic and imported fresh produce. Perhaps the most salient point; the study does not support the assumption that U.S. produce is of "higher microbial quality" than Mexican produce.