Food news for consumers

18 Pages·1991·1.9 MB·English

by  United States. Food Safety and Quality Service

Historic, Archive Document
Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.

FOOD
NEvvS
0^
FOR CONSUMERS
UnitedStatesDepartmentofAgriculture
Volume7 Number4 Winter1991 y""} FoodSafetyandInspectionService
esearching a
Safer Food Supply
2
FOOD NEWS The People Behind the
FORCONSUMERS Advances in Food Safety
Winter1991
Vol.7,No.4
AMessagefromFSIS'sAdministratorDr. LesterM. Crawford
FoodNewsforConsumersispublishedby
USDA'sFoodSafetyandInspection
Service,theagencychargedwithensuring
thesafety,wholesomenessandproper I ampleasedtointroducethe
labelingofthenation'smeatandpoultry secondannualFoodNewsissue
ascutpspltyo.prTohteecmtapguabzliincesarfeeptoyr,tcsohveorwinFgSIS designedtoexplainhowwe
researchfindingsandregulatoryefforts useadvancesinsciencetopro-
importantinunderstandinghowthe ducesafermeatandpoultryprod-
agencyworksandhowconsumerscan
protectthemselvesagainstfoodborne ucts. Thismessageisparticularly
illness. importantatatimewhenheadlines
everywhereremindusthattheinteg-
AssistantSecretaryforMarketing rityofthefood supplycontinuesto
andInspectionServices beanationalconcern.
JoAnnR.Smith Further,Iwelcomethechanceto
FSISAdministrator sayhowproudIamoftheUSDA
LesterM.Crawford menandwomenwhoseaccomplish-
mentsarepresentedhere.Toname
AssociateAdministrator
Ronald Prucha justafew.Dr. Lattuada'smicrobiol-
J.
ogyteaminBeltsville,Maryland,
ACsastihsetrainnteAEd.mAidnaismtsrator developedthenew8-hourtestfor
botulinumtoxin,andDr. Robert
Director,Information Buchanan'slaboratoryteamatPhiladelphia'sEasternResearchCenterhas
aDanvdiLdegBi.sSlcathimviedtAffairs taughtacomputertopredictpathogengrowthinfoodproducts.These
advancesrepresentthevanguardofpublichealthresearch. Bothprojectsare
Chief,PublicAwareness mentionedinthe "AddingtoScience" story,p. 10.
LauraFox ThereareahostofotheroutstandingUSDAresearchersofcourse. Buttheir
Editor workwouldhavefarlessimpactwithouttheeffortsofotherAgencyperson-
MaryAnnParmley nelwhoturnresearchresultsintofoodsafetyprograms. Thisincludesthose
202/447-9351 whospeakdirectlytoconsumers.
NewsWiresEditor I'mthinkingofthefourteenhomeeconomistsonFSIS'sMeatand Poultry
LizLapping Hotline. Thesespecialistsheardfrom80,000consumerslastyearwithbasic
questionsaboutfoodhandling. Sinceweknowthatjustunderhalfoffood-
ArtDirector
JulieS.Olson borneillnessoccursinthehome,theHotlinefunctionisvitalinpreventing
manyseriousincidents(storyp. 4).
PMraoxdiuncetiGornant Weapplaud theeffortsofDr. RichardCarnevaleand hisstaffin keeping
harmfulresiduesoutofmeatand poultry (p. 6) and thebiotechnology
FoodNewsforConsumersispublishedfour researchersatworkonnewanimaldrugs, testsand cures (p. 12). Thelistgoes
timesayear.Subscriptionpriceis$5.00 onandon.
(domestic)or$6.25(foreign)peryear. Fromnewideas,afterall,comethesolutions toenduringproblems.
Tosubscribe,filloutorderblankonbackcover.
Sendsubscriptionordersto:
SuperintendentofDocuments,
U.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice,
Washington,DC20402.
Sendcommentsandinquiriesto:
Editor,FoodNewsforConsumers,
FSIS/ILA,Room1165South,
UW.aSs.hiDnegptaornt,meDnCt2of02A5g0r,iculture, Dr. LesterCrawford,ndiuiiiistratorofUSDA'sFood SafetyandInspection
Telephone:[phone]. Service, isa veterinarian withadoctoratein pharmacology. Dr. Crawfordserves
as the U.S. coordinatoroftheCodexAUmentarius Commission,a UnitedNations
Useofcommercialandtradenamesdoesnot group thatsetsstandardsforfoodsafetyaround theworld. Hewaspreviously
implyapprovalorconstituteendorsementby
USDAortheFoodSafetyandInspectionSer\ico. directorofFDA'sCenterfor VeterinaryMedicine.
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS•WINTER1991
CONTENTS
It'sTrue!Governmentmaterials
aren'tcopyrightedsoyoucanuse
contentsandart!
ConsumerEducation
4 USDA'sMeatand PoultryHotline Links
Scientists and Consumers
It'saperfect match. Consumers wantexpertadviceon safefood
handling,and,aspublichealth officials,we'rekeenly interested in any
problemspeoplehavehandlingfood
10 ANewLookatFood SafetyEducation
fSIS introducesa new brochure "A QuickConsumerGuideto SafeFood
Handling" afterresearchingscientific, consumerneeds
Special Features
—
8 Addingto Science FSIS-sponsored Basic Research
onFood Safety
From bacterial controls in meatandpoultryplants toa new computer
thatcan predictwhichfoodbornepathogens maycauseproblems duringa
product's shelf-life,a research roundup
12 Movinginto aBiotechWorld
Explains howbiotechnologycan beused toproduce bettertomorrows in
plantandanimalproduction
Food Safety
6 AninterviewwithDr. Richard Camevale onResidue Control
inMeatand PoultryProducts
Surveillance is up,violative incidentsaredown
News Wires
14 Outlinesfoodsafetygoals in the "HealthyPeople2000" effort
spearheaded by theDepartmentofHealthandHuman Services
14 Moreresearch will beneeded to resolvewhetheraddedsaltkeeps some
foodsfrom cooking thoroughly in themicrowave
14 Dr. LesterM. Crawford,administratorofUSDA'sFood Safetyand
Inspection Service, is named to thePewHealth Professions Commission
15 WithFSIS's new "DangerZone" video, teachingfoodsafety injunior
high isfarfroma "nightmare"
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS• WINTER1991
4
USDA's
Meat and Poultry Hotline
Links Scientists and
Consumers
by Dianne Durant
Some80,000callersayear problemsconsumershavewith happenedinthecaseofthe"jumping
checkwithUSDA'sMeat food." salmonella."
andPoultryHotlineforsafe Howdoesthiswork? "What'llIdo?" askedthecaller. "1
foodhandlingadviceon Takealookatthecaseofthepro- thinksalmonellafrommychicken
everythingfromhowtostuffthetur- fessionalcatererwhocalledtheHot- mayhavejumpedtomykitchen
keytowhentodiscardleftovers. lineperplexedbyherbrightredfully curtains!"
"ButtheHotlinealsodoesanother cookedmeatballs. Thecallerhadjustreadanewspa-
job," saysmanagerSueTemplin, perarticlecitingastudythatrinsing
withUSDA'sFoodSafetyandInspec- "Are theydone?" chickenbeforecookingcouldspread
tionService(FSIS). "Sincewestarted salmonellacontamination.
fiveyearsago,we'veevolvedintoan "Aretheydone?" thecatererasked. Afterfindingthestudythrougha
openlinebetweenconsumersand HotlineresearcherBessieBerry stateuniversity,theHotlinestaff
scientists." ThroughtheHotline,says knewtherecouldbeseveralreasons reassuredthecallerthatsalmonella
Templin, "consumersstayintouch forfullycookedmeattoretainared bacteriacan't "jump."
withthelatestresearchonfoodsafety color. Salmonellaandotherbacteriacan
whilegovernmentscientistsare Shetold thecallerthatstudies bespread,though, ifyou don'tthor-
givenawindowontheeveryday showthatwhenmeatkeepsared or oughlywashwithhot,soapywater
pinktingeevenafterthoroughcook- anythingthatcomesin touch with
ing,itmayberelatedtothemeat's rawfood,includingrawmeatand its
leannessoracidity. juices.Thisincludesyourhands,
Foodscientistshavealsofound utensilsandcountertops.
thatcookingmeatwithsomevegeta-
bles,hkeonions,can affectthecolorif Encephalitis Excitement
thevegetablehashighamountsof
naturallyoccurringnitrites. Theheadlineread "EncephalitisDis-
Still,ifmeatisthoroughlycooked, covered inLocalChickens."
it'sgenerallysafetoeat.Cookred Callsstarted comingin.
meatto160° F,poultryto180° and "What'sencephalitis?" "Doesthis
fishuntilitflakeswitha fork. mean mychickendinnercanmake
mesick?"
"Jumping Salmonella" Humanencephalitisisa virusnor-
BessieBerry(I)andSueTemplin (r), mallyspreadbymosquitoes.Accom-
Hotlinesupervisorandmanager,discuss Sometimesnewstudiescontributeto paniedbyfeverandchills,itcanbe
theday'sschedule. consumerconfusion.That'swhat serious.
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS•WINTER1991
5
When the calls starting rushing in about what kinds offoods
families could safely send their loved ones stationed in Saudi Arabia,
the Hotline staffknew a major new issue had to be addressed.
tasandmeringuebaskets. familiescouldsafelysendtheirloved
Inshort,theHotline'seggadviceis onesstationedinSaudiArabia,the
thateggsandeggproductsaresafe Hotlinestaffknewamajornewissue
whenthoroughlycooked.Yolksand hadtobeaddressed.
whitesshouldbefirmandeggdishes ConferringwithFSISfoodscien-
shouldreach160°F. tists,themilitaryandtheU.S. Postal
Inanotherinstance,consumercalls Service,theHotlineissuedapress
questioningthesafetyofpre-stuffed releaseonpackingandmailing
turkeysalertedtheHotlinestaffto guidelines.
potentialpublichealthproblems. Newspaperandtelevisioncover-
Hotlinestaffcheckedwithagency ageofthereleasepromptedstillmore
microbiologiststopinpointhazards calls,showingonceagainhowuseful
andfollowedupwithfoodindustry FSIS'sMeatandPoultryHotlineisin
representatives. connectingconsumerswithinforma-
WorkingthroughtheFoodMarket- tiontheywant. *
ingInstitute,theHotlineissuedguid-
Karen Tracey(standing),Hotlinesuper- ancerecommendingagainstpre-
visor,conferswithNancyConnor. stuffingfresh,wholeturkeysandpro- How to Call the Hotline
videddetailed stepsonsafehandling
forbothretailstoresandconsumers. Weekdays 10a.m. to4p.m. (EST),call
WhiletheHotHnestaffdidn'tthink Thisfallwhenthecallsstarting 1-800-535-4555. Washington D.C.area
anyonecouldgetencephalitisfrom rushinginaboutwhatkindsoffoods residentsdial202-447-3333.
eatingchicken,theydidcheckwith
FSISepidemiologists.Asthey
thought,andcouldnowreassurecall-
ers,theanswerwasthatthevirusin The USDA Hotline Team
chickenscan'tbetransmittedto
humansunderanycircumstances. USDAHotlinehomeeconomistshavediversebackgrounds. Thestaff
Shaping Food Policies includesformernutritioneducators,publichealthandcommunitynutri-
tionexperts,aconsumeradvisor,microwavecookingspecialists,asyndi-
catednutritioncolumnistandregistereddietitianswithnursinghomeand
Linkingconsumerswithanetworkof
hospitalexperience.
foodscientistsnotonlycreatesgood
communication,butitcanalsoshape The Experts Behind
newfoodpolicies. the Hotline
TherecentappearanceoftheSal-
monellaenteritidisbacteriainfresh, WithinFSIS,Hotlinestaffarebackedupbyagencyscientistsandprofes-
unbrokeneggscreatedsomeunique sionalswhoareexpertinsubjectsfrommicrobiology,foodtechnologyand
problemsbecauseofthewidevariety
foodborneillnesstofoodadditives/residues,foodcompositionand
offoodsinwhicheggsareused.
labeling.
TheHotlinestaff,usingconsumer HotlinestaffalsoconsultwithUSDAexpertsinotheragenciesandrely
questionsasaguide,workedwith
ontheextensiveholdingsoftheNationalAgriculturalLibraryforscientific
scientistsfromUSDA'sAnimaland
sourceinformation.
PlantHealthInspectionService,Cor-
Finally,Hotlinestaffworkwithotherfederalfoodexperts,foodindus-
nellUniversityandthefoodindustry
todevelopnewguidelinesonthesafe tryscientistsandanationalnetworkoffood scientistsandresearchersat
universitiesthroughoutthecountry.
useofeggsineverythingfrombever-
agesandfrostingstohomemadepas-
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS• WINTER1991
6
food.TheEnvironmentalProtection
Agency(EPA)doesthesamefor
pesticides.
An Intennew with Theseagenciesareveryconserva-
tiveinsettingtolerances.Theyprovide
Richard Camevale on asafetymarginthatisusuallymany
Dr. hundredsoftimeslowerthanthelevel
Residue Control in tihnasttamnicegsh,tehvaernmwpheeonplree.sIindumeossatre
Meat and Poultry Products foundinmeatandpoultryabovethe
legallevel,itdoesn'tmeantheprod-
uctsarenotsafesincethestandardis
setsohigh.
HWhyaredrugsandagricultural
chemicalsusedatalliftheycan
leaveresidues?
Vaccines,antibioticsandother
animaldrugshelpimproveani-
malhealth.Astheyarebeingraised,
byMarjorie Davidson someanimalsmayneeddrugstocom-
bataspecificproblem.Someproduc-
ersalsoadministerdrugsatlow,"sub-
therapeutic" levelstopreventdisease.
Treatedanimalsmustbekeptfrom
marketforaprescribed "withdrawal
period"untilthedrugshaveworked
H throughtheirsystems.
r. Richard A. Surveysshowsomeconsumers Pesticidesareusedtocontrolpests
Camevale heads areconcernedaboutthedangers thatinformeryearswouldhave
the Residue ofdrug,chemicalandpesticideresi- destroyedanentireseason'scrops.
duesinmeatandpoultryproducts.Is Theirusehasenabledgreaterproduc-
Monitoringand
thisfearwarranted? tionofwholesome,appealingfood.
Control Program. Theprogram, Sometimespesticidesorotherchem-
part ofthe Scienceand Technology Scientifictestsindicatethatcon- icalscanaccidentallybeintroduced
Branch in USDAs Food Safety sumersrunlittleriskofhealth intoanimalfeed.Animalssuchaschick-
and Inspection Service (FSIS), effectsfromresiduesinmeator ensorhogsmaytransfercertainresi-
screensfor illegal residues in poultry. duestoeachotherthroughtheirfeces.
EveryyeartheFoodSafetyand
domesticand imported meat and HHow
InspectionService(FSIS)conducts doyou respondtothose
poultryproducts. morethan11/2millionanalysesfor whoclaim theresidueproblem
Dr. Camevale received his residues,andlessthan1 percentofall wouldendifagriculturalchemicals
degree in veterinary medicinefrom thesetestsshowillegalresidues.And werebanned?
PthreioUrntiovecrosmiitnygoftoPeFnSnIsSy,lhveania. tdheactlivniionlgatoivoenrrattheehlaasstbdeeecnadset.eaTdhielrye HAsaresultofpublicconcern,we
workedat theFoodand Drug hgalse,sienrifoaucts,hbeeaelnthneoffeevcitdfernocmeroefsaidsuine-s ofsafnetoywinhtahveewaavyeraygrsitcruiclttusrtaalncdahredm-
Administration's Centerfor inmeatorpoultryinthelast20years. icalsarecontrolled.Withoutacompre-
VeterinaryMedicine. hensiveregistrationandcontrolsys-
FoodNews recently talked to W/zosets thestandardsforthese temforsafeagriculturalchemicals,
Dr. Camevaleabout how FSIS tests? usersmightresorttounsafemethods.
acts to protect consumersfrom Therewouldalsobemoreanimals
TheFoodandDrugAdministra- losttodiseaseiftheuseofanimal
residues in theirfood. tion(FDA)approvesanimal drugswasprohibited.Theresulting
drugs,specifiestheirusesandsetstol- needtoraisegreaternumbersofani-
erancesorlimitsfortheirresiduesin malsformarketwouldincreasethe
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS•WINTER1991
7
costofmeatandpoultryproductsat deceptiontoavoiddetection,suchas
thegrocerystore. changingtheirnamesandaddresses.
Thisdataassiststechnicalstaffsin
HHow
doyouknowwho's reviewingandassessingpotential
responsiblewhenthereisan long-termresidueproblemsaswell.
outbreakofresidueviolations? Forexample,adetailedreportcover-
ingseveralyearsofresidueviolations
WeusetheResidueViolation canbeusefulinformulatingpublic
InformationSystem(RVIS),a policyconcerninguseofthesubstance.
nationwideinteragencycomputer
informationsystemthatallowsFSIS HAreorganicfoodssaferthan
andtheFoodandDrugAdministra- otherfoods?
tiontotraceresidueviolationstotheir
sourceandtoeliminatetheproblem. No.Somepeoplewouldadvo-
—
Informationonviolationsisentered cateeatingorganicfoods foods
intoRVISandisimmediatelyavaila- thatareproducedw—ithouttheuseof
bletoallusers.Thesystemisflexible drugsorpesticides ^becauseitreduces
enoughthatinvestigatorsareableto contaminationtotheenvironment.
pinpointindividualswithmultiple However,thereisnoreasontoeat
violationsevenwhentheyhaveused organicfoods,ortopaymoreforthem, ilydeclined.Thereisnoreasonto
onthepresumptionthatsuch believethatcertifiedorganicmeatand
foodsaresafer.Infact,the poultrywouldnotalsocontainlow
pesticideresiduesmost levelsofthesesamechemicals.
oftenfoundbyFDAand
USDAarethoseofthe HWhatcanconsumersdoto
chlorinatedhydrocarbons reduceexposuretoresiduesthat
thathavebuiltupinthe mightbepresentinmeatandpoultry?
environmentoverthe
yearsandmostofwhich Hlf,despitetheassurancesabout
arenolongerregisteredfor thetestingofmeatandpoultry
use.Thesechemicalscausea products,consumersarestillcon-
low-levelenvironmental cernedaboutresidues,therearesome
contaminationthathasstead- precautionstheycantake.Thefirstis
totrimfatfrommeatbeforeeating.If
certainpesticideresiduesarepresent,
theyarelikelytobeconcentratedin
fat.Anotherprecautionistoeatonly
smallamountsofkidneys,livers,and
otherorganmeats.Certainresidues
concentrateintheseorgans.Finally,
followwhatisgoodnutritionaladvice
aswell.Eatamoderate,balanceddiet,
withplentyofvariety.Includelean
meat,poultry,fish,eggsandotherpro-
teinsources.
Furtherinformationaboutresiduescanhe
foundinFSIS'snewpublicationMeat
andPoultrySafety:Questionsand
AnswersAboutChemicalResidues.
TorequestacopywriteFSIS,Room 1165
SouthBuilding, Washington,B.C.20250.
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS•WINTER1991
8
Adding Science
to
FSiS-Sponsored Basic Researcii on Food Safety
byMaryAnn Parmley
beensaidthatscienceconsists alsoensuresmoreaccuratesalmonella Lattuada,"Thisisamajorpublichealth
It'nsotsomuchinhavingtheright counts.PrincipalFSISinvestigator: breakthroughinthatanyoneexposed
answersasinaskingtheright RussellMiller,1-301-344-1820. tobotulismneedsimmediatemedical
questions. Listeriamonocytogenes,aproblematic attention.Now,withineighthours,we
Why?Becausethetrick,theorists foodbomebacteriathatgrows(slowly) cantellwhetherpatientshavebeen
say,isalwaystoleavethedooropena atrefrigeratortemperaturesandcan exposed.Thetestresultsarealso
bitonourignorance.Thisisvitalsince haveseriousconsequencesinindividu- machine-readable,whichisaboon
respectforwhatwedon'tknowpro- alswithweakenedimmunesystems sincethecomputer"sees"faintcolor
tectsusfromquickanswerswhichall- (i.e.,theelderly,pregnantwomenand variationsnotobvioustothehuman
too-oftenjustsupportourtheories. thechronicallyill),isthefocusofsev- eye.Thisiscriticalsince,inthistest,
Certainly,FSISresearchersand eralFSISstudies. botulinum-contaminatedfoodturnsa
thoseincooperatinginstitutions USDA'sAgriculturalResearchSer- testplateyellow,andthehigherthe
exhibitthatkindofdedicationdaily, viceisstudyingwaystokeepL.mono- yellowtones,thehigherthetoxinlev-
becausetheanswersinfoodsafetyare cytogenesfromgrowingduringrefrig- els."Informationcontact,Hedy
noteasy.They'renoteasytoarriveat eration.Theseincludeaddingsaltand Ohringer,FSISInformation,
scientifically.Often,answersonfood nitratestofoods,decreasingmoisture 1-202-447-9U3.
safetyissuesarenotblackorwhite,but ormodifyingpH(acid-base)levels.
mustbedecidedonthebasisofapre- TheNationalCentersforDisease
ponderanceofevidenceratherthanon Control(CDC),Atlanta,isworking
definitiveconclusions. withbothFSISandtheFoodandDrug
Plusit'sfarfromeasywhenthere Administrationinanepidemiological
areoutbreaksoffoodbomeillnessand studyofL. monocytogenes.
everyonewantsanswersyesterday. Inagivenoutbreak,CDCwould
Stillthequestcontinues.Thisstory conducta"refrigerator"surveytotest
outlinesasamplingofthebasic thefoodintherefrigeratorofanindi-
researcheffortsFSIScurrentlyhas vidualwho'scontractedlisteriosis.If
underway. CDCidentifiedthecausativestrainina
meatorpoultryproductfromthe
MicrobialControl patient'srefrigerator,FSISwouldtryto
tracetheproblembacktotheplantthat
Viewingsalmonellacontrolinpoultry suppliedit.Theplantwouldthenbe
asstartingonthefarm,researchersat requiredtoundertakeapainstaking
theFSISBeltsville,Md.lab,working reviewofitsoperationstoeliminatethe
withDr.EdwardMallinson,aUSDA sourceofthecontamination.
Extensionveterinarian,developeda Formoreinformation,contact:
"swab"testfordetectingsalmonella SusanRehe,FSISInformationOffice,
levelsinthechickencoop. 1-202-447-9113.
Thetest,whichcanberunwithmin- InwhatmayrankasFSIS'smicro-
imaltraining,involvesdraggingaspe- bialcoupoftheyear,anFSISresearch
ciallymoistenedlargegauzepad teaminBeltsville,Md.cappedthree
acrossthelitterinthecoop.Thesticky yearsofworkwitha—new8-hourtest
swababsorbssalmonellacells.The forbo—tulinumtoxin thecauseofbot-
swabsareincubatedovernightinaspe- ulism thatdetectsextremelylowlev-
cialsolutionandstreakedontreated elsofthetoxininsuspectfood
growthplatesthenextday. samples.
Thissimple,inexpensivemethod SaysteamleaderDr.Charles
FOODNEWSFORCONSUMERS• WINTER1991