Archive for March, 2008

Aid workers free after Chad pardon

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Five of six French aid workers convicted of plotting to kidnap African children for adoption in Europe have been released from prison following their pardon by Chad’s president, CNN affiliate BFM reported.

Striking farmers resume blockades in Argentina

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Argentine farmers seething at export taxes on their crops resumed blockades of rural highways Monday after talks failed to end a 19-day-old strike that has halted grain exports and emptied supermarket shelves of meat.

***Prepare to attend the biggest raw milk event in history: raw milk needs you like never before on April 15th** - (Mark McAfee, Founder OPDC)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

It is now official. Senator Dean Florez and Senator Abel Maldonado will hold joint hearings on raw milk in California. Representing the CDFA and the FDA will be the chief of FDA dairy safety, John Sheehan, along with eight other university food safety experts. Protecting our right to drink raw milk will ...

The Founding Fathers drank raw milk, you know - (Kansas City Star)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://primebuzz.kcstar.com/?q=node/10749 JEFFERSON CITY | Life, liberty and…raw milk? A couple of press releases regarding proposed milk legislation showed up in the Capitol media mailboxes this morning. Yep, milk legislation. They’d be pretty unremarkable, these press releases, but for some of the arguments they contain. One urges lawmakers to oppose House Bill 2283 , which would ...

BLOG: One year later, it is now known that the pet food recall of 2007 had a precursor - (Pet Supply Verified Weblog)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://psvatimi.wordpress.com/2008/03/31/one-year-later-it-is-now-known-that-the-pet-food-recall-of-2007-had-a-precursor/ It has been one year since the massive pet food recalls of spring 2007. We now know that an outbreak of pet food induced illness and death in Asia in 2004 was also caused by contamination of grains by melamine and cyanuric acid. If only this had been known prior ...

Listeria monocytogenes: The survivor amongst bacteria - (Newsfood.com)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.newsfood.com/Articolo/International/2008-03/20080331-Listeria-monocytogenes-survivor-amongst-bacteria.asp A new consumer leaflet of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) provides information on protection against infections with Listeria, the leaflet is available from the BfR press office, as infections with these bacteria, particularly with Listeria monocytogenes, have increased in Germany and Europe in recent years, BfR felt it ...

CANADA celebrates WTO beef growth hormone ruling - (EU Business)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/1206981121.85 Canada’s trade minister on Monday “welcomed” a WTO panel report critical of the EU, US and Canada for ignoring global trade rules in a row over beef treated with growth hormones. The World Trade Organization earlier confirmed that the European Union’s 1989 ban on imports of Canadian beef from cattle treated ...

WTO rejects EU beef hormone ban but also raps US, Canada - (EU Business)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/1206980222.5 The World Trade Organisation on Monday ruled that the European Union, United States and Canada all failed to respect global trade rules in a long-running row over beef treated with growth hormones. The EU was at fault because its present justifications for an import ban — which were revised after a ...

WTO to rule against EU in beef dispute - (Forbes)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/03/28/ap4826988.html The World Trade Organization will rule against the European Union next week in a dispute over beef treated with hormones, The Associated Press learned Friday, allowing the U.S. and Canada to keep in place millions of dollars in sanctions on European products. Brussels argues that the hormones pose a risk to ...

The revolution will not be pasteurized: Inside the raw-milk underground - (Harper’s Magazine)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2008/04/0081992 The process of heating milk to kill bacteria has been common for nearly a century, and selling unpasteurized milk for human consumption is currently illegal in Canada and in half the U.S. states. Yet thousands of people in North America still seek raw milk. Some say milk in its natural state keeps ...

The Food Safety and Inspection Service begins posting salmonella performance results - (Meatingplace.com)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.meatingplace.com/MembersOnly/webNews/details.aspx?item=20157 The Food Safety and Inspection Service has for the first time made public results from completed samples sets from its Salmonella Verification Program for broiler slaughter establishments in performance Category 2 and Category 3. In a posting on its Web site, the agency said going forward it intends to post updated ...

OPINION: USDA can do better - (Los Angeles Times)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-beef31mar31,0,239080.story Unless you’re a vegetarian, chances are you have no idea whether you bought meat from a Chino slaughterhouse that has been the subject of the biggest beef recall in U.S. history. The scrutiny of the Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. recall has brought to public light what consumer groups have long ...

IFSN: Raw, frozen chicken thingies — do not cook in a microwave - (International Food Safety Network)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/2008/03/articles/salmonella/raw-frozen-chicken-thingies-do-not-cook-in-a-microwave/ Should microwaves be used to safely cook or simply reheat food? Depends. An outbreak of salmonella in Minnesota last week was once again linked to frozen, raw chicken thingies — in this case breaded, pre-browned chicken cordon bleu and chicken Kiev produced by Milford Valley Farms. This is the fifth such outbreak the ...

BOSTON: Got raw milk? - (Boston Globe magazine)

Monday, March 31st, 2008

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/magazine/articles/2008/03/23/got_raw_milk/ David E. Gumpert, described as a freelance writer living in Needham (who also runs a blog, The Complete Patient, advocating raw milk — dp, http://www.thecompletepatient.com/welcome/) writes that Valerie Walbek is a 28-year-old nurse practitioner at a Falmouth clinic who gives all her pregnant patients the same advice: Eat four daily servings ...

Chad pardons French workers who took kids

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Read full story for latest details.

War crime charges for Tanzania bomb suspect

Monday, March 31st, 2008

An al Qaeda suspect alleged to have been involved in the 1998 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania that killed 11 people faces war crimes charges, the Pentagon announced Monday.

Guests only for Chinese Olympic ceremony

Monday, March 31st, 2008

China launched its Olympic torch relay in a controlled ceremony in front of invited guests at Tiananmen Square on Monday, starting a historic trek that was praised by the country’s leaders and condemned by critics who are waiting to protest along the route.

Sources: Iran helped prod al-Sadr cease-fire

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Iran was integral in persuading Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to halt attacks by his militia on Iraqi security forces, an Iraqi lawmaker has said.

Bush heads to his last NATO summit

Monday, March 31st, 2008

President Bush will seek to persuade reluctant European allies to commit more troops for the fight in Afghanistan at his last North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit this week.

Turkey’s rulers face trial over Islamic policies

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Read full story for latest details.

Official: Basra bloodshed to end ’soon’

Monday, March 31st, 2008

The Iraqi government hopes to end military operations in the southern city of Basra as soon as possible, government officials told CNN on Monday.

Death toll up in Angola building collapse

Monday, March 31st, 2008

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Death toll rises to 24 in building collapse in Angola

Monday, March 31st, 2008

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‘Dirty war’ officer sent back to Argentina

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Former Argentine officer Ricardo Miguel Cavallo was put on a commercial flight to Argentina on Monday to face charges of human rights abuses, a police source told CNN.

Coroner: Prince not involved in Diana death

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Read full story for latest details.

Coroner: No evidence of Diana murder plot

Monday, March 31st, 2008

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Official: Basra bloodshed to end this week

Monday, March 31st, 2008

A top Iraqi official said Monday that he believed the military operations which have left hundreds dead in Basra will be over by the end of this week.

Costa Rica minister quits over FARC concerns

Monday, March 31st, 2008

The security minister in Costa Rica stepped down Sunday after alluding to possible links between a Colombian rebel group and Costa Rican politicians.

Zimbabwe delay raises vote fears

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Zimbabwe’s government began slowly announcing parliamentary election results Monday morning, but the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has not released any results yet in the presidential contest.

S. Korea leader to give salary to poor

Monday, March 31st, 2008

South Korea’s new president has pledged to donate his salary to the underprivileged.

Zimbabwe vote results trickle in

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Zimbabwe’s government began slowly announcing parliamentary election results Monday morning, but the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has not released any results yet in the presidential contest.

World summit turns to greenhouse gases

Monday, March 31st, 2008

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Olympic torch re-lit in Beijing

Monday, March 31st, 2008

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Observers push for fast Zimbabwe poll results

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Election observers called on Zimbabwe’s government to release the results of weekend elections as soon as possible to avoid political unrest, but government officials said the results won’t be out until Monday.

Al-Sadr calls off fighting amid crackdown

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr told his followers to stop fighting and cooperate with Iraqi security forces Sunday, as U.S. and Iraqi forces targeted his Mehdi Army in Basra and Baghdad.

Sources: Spain to extradite Argentine officer

Monday, March 31st, 2008

Guards took former Argentine officer Ricardo Miguel Cavallo from a Spanish prison Sunday because he will likely be extradited to Argentina to face charges of human rights abuses Monday, sources told CNN.

McCain looks ahead as Dems fight it out

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

Sen. John McCain this week begins a bus tour of five states that he says helped shape his views and make him the politician who will carry the GOP torch in the upcoming presidential election.

CALIFORNIA: Leafy greens program turns 1 - (Capital Press)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://www.capitalpress.info/main.asp?SectionID=67&SubSectionID=616&ArticleID=40361&TM=4955.55 California’s Leafy Greens Handler Marketing Agreement has, according to this story, marked its first full year of operation with more than 500 food safety audits and the absence of any food borne illnesses associated with leafy greens in 2007. Scott Horsfall, chief executive officer of the California Leafy Green Handler Marketing ...

US: Safety agencies overwhelmed by surging inspection workload - (FederalTimes.com)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://federaltimes.com/index.php?S=3451114 The nation’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart — a company that imports heavily from countries with lax safety standards — is, according to this story, asking the federal government to strengthen its oversight of consumer products. And the Grocery Manufacturers Association has become one of more than 180 companies and industry groups calling ...

COLORADO: Progress being made in Alamosa - (The Denver Post)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_8752324 State and local officials are, according to this story, expected to announce progress this morning in the cleanup of salmonella-tainted water in Alamosa. The entire city should be able to take a shower, for one thing. But there is no word yet on when residents in this town of 9,000 will be ...

COLORADO: Salmonella illnesses top 300 in Alamosa - (Santa Fe New Mexican)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/Local%20News/Salmonella-illnesses-top-300-in-Alamosa ALAMOSA, Colo. — Some residents in northern Alamosa were, according to this story, allowed to start using tap water for brief showers Saturday as crews continued a multiday flush of the city water system to purge salmonella bacteria. The flush of about 50 miles of waterlines was being conducted in sections. ...

CANADA: Put out to pasteurize - (The Gazette)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=8cc598a9-22f1-42af-a4c0-40627d9de57b Carol Vachon, described as Quebec’s best-known crusader against the Canada-wide ban on raw milk consumptio, was quoted as telling about 40 students in the food sciences building at Université Laval last week that, “For the past 100 years, the scientific world has been completely closed to raw milk, making research ...

CANADA: Officials cite poisonings - (The Gazette)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=a21ea477-d8ad-40dc-be5e-ad52d11b5dba Despite raw milk having been banned for more than 40 years, Quebec food-safety officials were cited as saying public-health statistics show many Quebecers continue to be poisoned by it every year. For example, in what he called “an average year,” Michel Houle, a veteran food inspection councillor with the Ministère de ...

BARFBLOG: Raw milk BS - (barfblog)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/2008/03/articles/raw-milk/raw-milk-bs/index.html The advertisement masquerading as a story about raw milk in the March 23, 2008 Boston Globe magazine (Got raw milk?) should have noted that the author is an advocate for raw milk, which may help explain the statistical cherry picking throughout the story – like comparing confirmed illnesses from raw ...

iFSN: Handwashing public service announcements - (International Food Safety Network)

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

Audio and video PSAs available at: http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/2008/03/articles/handwashing/handwashing-public-service-announcements/index.html Dude, wash your hands. Proper handwashing with the proper tools — soap, water and paper towel — can significantly reduce the number of foodborne and other illnesses. People should be washing their hands before handling food and, for example:_ • after using the toilet; • when entering the kitchen ...

Tibet speaker: Dalai Lama not behind riots

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

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China: Dalai Lama closing door on Tibet talks

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

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Reports: New protests break out in Tibet

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

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Death toll from Iraq fighting nears 300

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

A strict curfew was extended indefinitely in the Iraqi capital Sunday as the death toll mounted from clashes between government troops and Shiite Muslim militants.

Radical cleric defiant as Iraq fighting rages

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has rejected the Iraqi prime minister’s calls for his militia to stop fighting Iraqi security forces and lay down their arms, a top al-Sadr aide said today.