Digestible facts about radiation
There are 27 nuclear sites situated at various points around the UK. Inevitably, as with any industrial process, they produce waste that enters the environment and may find its way into our food. But...
View ArticleLet pregnant women enjoy their pregnancy
Let pregnant women enjoy their pregnancyWhen women are pregnant, they should be offered every assistance in enjoying what can be an exciting time in their lives. One of the ways the FSA has contributed...
View ArticleFood safety: it’s more than child’s play
Have you ever learned something new while helping your children with homework or with a school project? I’m not embarrassed to admit that in the past I have. This is one of the reasons why teaching...
View ArticleNo one muzzles FSA scientists
I was interested to read on the BBC website that one of the UK’s most influential science communicators is ‘pressing the Government to let more of its scientists speak out’.According to a reportby BBC...
View ArticleClear cut and ungarbled
The last thing I would wish to be accused of is that this blog promotes a ‘garbled’ message on the role of science in food safety. It was with some surprise, then, that I discovered the term ‘garbler’...
View ArticleIndustry funded pseudoscientists? Not us!
When does a science commentator become an ‘industry funded pseudoscientist’? Surprisingly, it might depend on whether the media agrees with their views – rather than on the funding involved.For...
View ArticleCSI campylobacter
Research planned by the Food Standards Agency could lead to a CSI-style breakthrough in bringing the campylobacter bug ‘to book’.The FSA is planning to fund research that will use whole genome...
View ArticleWhy meat from cattle with TB is very low risk
You’ve probably heard some of the discussion on cattle with TB going into the food chain either on the news or on Twitter in the past couple of days. The Food Standards Agency refers to the very low...
View ArticleScience and evidence are our founding principles
Next week, the FSA Board will discuss the draft Annual Report of the FSA Chief Scientist, 2013.The report, which will be discussed in its draft form as an FSA Board paper contains some riveting reading...
View ArticleLet’s say a big merci to Catherine Geslain-Lanéelle
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) Executive Director Catherine Geslain-Lanéelle announced this week she was resigning to take up a public office in France from 1 September. More on the...
View ArticleSixty-day loaf: That'll be the day!
Apparently there is something in the water in Lubbock, Texas. The city that gave us Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock, Joe Ely and, of course, the great Buddy Holly, has now given us Microzap, a...
View ArticleSéralini study 'not supported by data'
I wrote a few weeks ago about research by Séralini et al that raised concerns about the potential toxicity of genetically modified maize NK603 and of a herbicide containing glycophosate. You will find...
View ArticleScience talks across the pond
I was delighted to welcome Steve Musser, from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to the FSA recently. Steve, who is Director of the Office of Regulatory Science at the FDA's Center for Food...
View ArticleBeing transparent about risk and decisions
I welcome the publication today of a report agreed by the Heads of National Food Agencies in Europe (HoA) that looks at how to ensure that risk assessments are used consistently and transparently in...
View ArticleDon't splash out on a turkey
If you wash your turkey under a tap, bacteria already present on the meat can be splashed up to three feet from where the meat is washed. It seems rather Olympian. It’s certainly not to be ignored....
View ArticleWhat's your science book of the year?
Assessing information and making decisions that will improve consumer health in relation to food is what we are about in the FSA. We are proud to say that our decisions are evidence-based and we...
View ArticleFacing the facts on Campylobacter
You may have heard our Chief Executive Catherine Brown being interviewed on BBC radio 4’s Face the Facts programme earlier this week. Catherine was talking about Campylobacter and urging industry to...
View ArticleMaking horse sense of contaminated burgers
It has no doubt come as a surprise to members of the public that traces of horse meat and pig meat have been found in ‘100% beef burgers’ sold by a number of UK high street retailers and that in one...
View ArticleFSA goes viral
If you read my blog on campylobacter yesterday you might be interested to find out that we have also been working on another bug – Norovirus. Earlier this week, a range of national and international...
View ArticleFancy checking out our priorities?
The Agency has just published itsForward Evidence Plan for 2013. The plan outlines science and evidence priorities for the coming year, including potential areas for research funding.The proposals...
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