Technology in food driving FDA’s announcements during the past week

During the same week that the Food and Drug Administration re-affirmed its approval of Atlantic salmon with an intentionally altered genome, the agency also permitted the growth of chicken from animal cells in laboratories.

The approval went to a specific company, UPSIDE FOODS. The company is a leader among those wanting to harvest cells from animals and then use the cells to grow meat and poultry in lab settings.

The federal government’s dual regulatory system for cell-grown meat and poultry … Read the rest

FDA’s new proposed food-safety ag water rule no slam dunk

– COMMENTARY –

“Like getting the rug pulled out from under us.” That’s how some farmers react when hearing about the FDA’s sudden and unexpected change in food safety requirements for the use of agricultural water before harvesting a crop. 

The original compliance date was January 2022, but the Food and Drug Administration has delayed it.

Because agricultural water can be a major pathway for pathogens, the Food Safety Modernization Act’s produce ag-water rule originally established microbial quality standards for … Read the rest