FDA Budget for Food Safety Rises
The 2015 budget for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will rise by 8.1% over the 2014 budget.
The 2015 budget for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will rise by 8.1% over the 2014 budget.
The total food portion of the budget will be $1.48 billion for food safety, which is an increase of $263 million above the 2014 enacted level. The FDA will invest $24 million to advance standards in food safety modernization through implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The FSMIA is one of the biggest reforms in US food safety law in over 70 years, and aims to ensure the US food supply is safe by moving from responding to contamination to preventing it. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), contaminated food puts approximately 48 million Americans at risk every year.
If the proposed user fee revenue is authorized and appropriated, the FDA will be able to undertake the wider array of activities needed to fulfill the food safety modernization goals of FSMA, including retraining of the federal and state inspection force, training and technical assistance for small and mid-size growers and processors, and building the modern import oversight system.
The implementation of the broad preventive controls framework mandated in FSMA aims to reduce cases of foodborne illness such as the E. coli O157 contamination of pre-packaged salads, Salmonella and Listeria contamination of cheese products, and Listeria contamination in cantaloupe. It will also help to minimize market disruptions and any economic costs imposed by outbreaks.
For more information please visit http://www.fda.gov/default.htm
Analytical Challenges in Measuring Migration from Food Contact Materials
November 2nd 2015Food contact materials contain low molecular weight additives and processing aids which can migrate into foods leading to trace levels of contamination. Food safety is ensured through regulations, comprising compositional controls and migration limits, which present a significant analytical challenge to the food industry to ensure compliance and demonstrate due diligence. Of the various analytical approaches, LC-MS/MS has proved to be an essential tool in monitoring migration of target compounds into foods, and more sophisticated approaches such as LC-high resolution MS (Orbitrap) are being increasingly used for untargeted analysis to monitor non-intentionally added substances. This podcast will provide an overview to this area, illustrated with various applications showing current approaches being employed.
