According to a report from Australian food law specialists FoodLegal, Australian beverage and food companies will need to watch closely what emerges from a recent American lawsuit. Foodlegal has reported that parents of a 13-year-old girl from Maryland, USA, have filed a lawsuit against Nestle USA, manufacturer of ‘Deer Park’ and ‘Poland Spring’ bottled waters with added fluoride, and also against Gerber Products Company, which manufactures baby food and infant formula products containing... ...Read more »

Davies Bakery Ltd is conducting a recall of its Bakers Life Multigrain Sandwich Sliced Bread. The bakery has said that some of the bread may be contaminated with fragments of plastic. The product in question, sold exclusively in Aldi’s Victorian-based stores, comes in brown and white plastic packaging and weighs 650g. Davies Bakery Ltd is recalling all loaves with a Best Before date of 12 October 2011 (today). Davies Bakery Ltd said, “Food products containing plastic may cause injury if consumed.... ...Read more »

Despite continuing concerns by local fishermen about the safety of fishing in Gladstone Harbour, central Queensland, a three-week fishing ban previously imposed on the harbour by the Queensland Government was lifted today. The ban had been originally imposed after locally-caught fish showed signs of illness. At the same time, local fishermen were also reported unwell after handling these fish. Queensland Fisheries Minister Craig Wallace claimed today the results of a water quality analysis and fish... ...Read more »

Three glass bottled beer products brewed by Little Creatures have been recalled over fears of possible presence of glass in the product due to faulty packaging. Little Creatures is a subsidiary of a company in which the Lion Nathan Group has a 40% interest. Its operations are based in Fremantle, Western Australia. A number of the Little Creatures Pale Ale, Bright Ale and Dreadnought Single Batch bottled beers, which are distributed to bottle shops and liquor stores across Australia, are potentially... ...Read more »

Parmalat has recalled its one-litre plastic bottles of Pura Milk full cream with a use-by of 15 June, after the company said it believed the batch had been contaminated with “a small amount” of food-grade sanitiser. The milk was distributed in NSW and the ACT only, in IGA and Foodworks supermarkets, service stations (such as Mobil and Caltex), hospitals and corner stores in metro and regional areas. The company said that the contamination “would result in the product having a metallic... ...Read more »

Popular instant noodle brand Mi Goreng is being investigated by Food Standards Australia New Zealand, after some of the company’s products were pulled from Taiwanese shelves last month, having being found to contain more than the legal maximum quantity of two preservatives. FSANZ will test the noodles, manufactured by Indonesian noodle giant IndoMie, for their Methyl-P-Hydroxybenzoate (E218) and benzoic acid content. The two preservatives were found in illegal quantities in Taiwanese products,... ...Read more »

A US study has conducted an analysis of BPA levels in American food, revealing that almost two-thirds of foods tested contained traces of the chemical, but at levels 1000 times less than accepted limits. Researchers measured BPA levels in 105 human, cat, and dog foods from a variety of grocery stores around Dallas, Texas. They detected BPA in 63 of these samples. However, the levels were significantly lower than 50 micrograms per kg of body weight, the limit used by America’s EPA and the European... ...Read more »

Synutra International, Inc, a leading infant formula company in China and a producer, marketer and seller of nutritional products for infants, children and adults, today announced that China’s Ministry of Health has found no link between Synutra’s infant milk powder and premature development of breasts in infants. The MOH announced on August 15th, after investigating claims that Synutra’s infant milk formula was linked to premature development in three infants, that no banned hormones... ...Read more »

Fonterra has been forced to publicly defend the quality of its products amid allegations that Chinese customer and infant formula maker Synutra, whom Fonterra supplies, has sold milk powder that has caused premature breast development in three girls. The New Zealand dairy giant yesterday confirmed it is a supplier to Synutra but said it “remains 100% confident about the quality of its products”. According to reports, parents and doctors in Hubei have voiced fears that milk powder produced... ...Read more »

A warning has been issued for seafood from Lake Tuross on NSW’s south coast after what is believed to be creosote oil, a wood preservative, was spilled in the lake. The oil is believed to have come from a drum, washed into the lake by storms at the end of May. Lake Tuross is home to a number of oyster farms and is popular with recreational fishers. The Greater Southern Area Health Service’s Director of Public Health, Tracey Oakman, said skin irritation can occur after contact with creosote,... ...Read more »