Be heard but not seen
Your views are really important to us and it’s always useful to hear what subjects interest you and what your concerns are. My team gets a lot of value out of the blog but we want to make sure it’s...
View ArticleAll clear for the Agency’s science
It’s good news for the Agency’s science again this week. The 2009 Agency-funded review of the nutrient content of organic foods has stood up to the scrutiny of the General Advisory Committee on Science...
View ArticleAn evidence based approach keeps the wolf at bay
Following the publication of the European Food Safety Authority survey on food, I was interested to read that only 29% of UK consumers think that food could damage their health. Of course I’m...
View ArticleNew evidence on E. coli
There was an interesting development in the science around E. coli O157 reported last week. An article in the British Medical Journal showed that E. coli O157 infection can lead to an increased risk of...
View ArticleWhere's your dinner from? There's an app for that...
Traceability – it’s like the food safety equivalent of the mobile phone, I can’t remember how we managed without it.Being able to trace where a product has come from and where it has gone to has become...
View ArticleScientific committee says clones are the same
Our advisory committee on novel foods and processes caused a stir in the media today. At their meeting yesterday they concluded that the evidence shows there’s no difference between the meat and milk...
View Article‘The co-pilot had fish. What did the navigator have?’
He’s not your typical advocate for food safety, but actor Leslie Nielsen, who died yesterday, did wonders for bringing the issue to people’s attention – Airplane! must be one of the only films in...
View ArticleIt’s just a gut feeling
I spotted another development in the science around E.coli O157 in the news last week. As part of an EU project, researchers have found that E.coli O157 has an advantage over other bacteria because it...
View ArticleAnother year older
I can hardly believe it. The blog has just crept into its fifth year, and, if my memory serves me correctly, the traditional gift for a four-year anniversary is fruit and flowers – vaguely appropriate...
View ArticleHave a hearty, healthy – and safe Christmas
I was interested to see that the US House of Representatives has given approval to measures that will give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) greater powers over food production. The aim is for...
View ArticleAn eggstraordinary invention
As I enjoyed a fine breakfast of British soft-boiled eggs, in the knowledge that they are as safe as they are delicious, I came across a story of fake eggs in China.In the UK we’ve had counterfeit...
View ArticleDoes illegal mean unsafe?
You may have seen the recent stories in the news about dioxin-contaminated eggs coming to the UK from Germany. Although eating these products is not considered to be a health concern, this story still...
View ArticleGM chickens to stop spread of bird flu
The news that researchers have produced a GM chicken that stops them transmitting avian flu raises interesting questions about our attitudes to the use of technology to produce the food we eat. Some...
View ArticleHow does weaning affect allergy development?
As Head of Food Allergy at the FSA, I'd like to draw attention to an article published in the BMJ today, by researchers at UCL, that suggests babies might benefit from being given solids earlier than...
View ArticleWhat are the risks from nanofoods? Help is at hand…
Depending on your views on new technology, nanotechnology is either an exciting development with huge potential benefits or another thing we need to worry about when we buy food. My view is that we...
View ArticleIs a new era of trust in science on the Horizon?
There is one question that we’re constantly striving to answer – why do so many people distrust science?On a Horizon programme tonight, Nobel Prize winner Sir Paul Nurse explores this and asks why...
View ArticlePrions transmitted by aerosol
BSE is an emotive subject, so I was surprised that new research demonstrating the transmission of prions (the infectious agent that cause BSE) by aerosol, slipped out last week without furore.The...
View ArticleA rule that's made to be broken
The Last Word section of New Scientist magazine this week illustrates beautifully the conflict in our lives between what we know scientifically and what we do. Last Word publishes questions from...
View ArticleThe end is nigh for BSE
The New Scientist had good news last week, reporting on the latest official figures from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), which show BSE has almost been eradicated – just 25 years after...
View ArticleCancer patients more at risk of listeria
Many people know that pregnant women should avoid soft mould-ripened cheese and pâté, but fewer are aware that cancer patients should also avoid these ready-to-eat foods for the same reason...
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