2008 Recap

Happy New Year! Sorry for the extended absence - the Christmas holiday always is busy for me and I found I had too few hours in my day, so something had to give. I decided that today's post would be on three interesting topics from 2008 headlines.


Melamine

Wow - was this ever a topic in 2008; the Chinese milk scandal was covered around the world. Melamine, for those still wondering exactly the newscasters were talking about, is a chemical compound used in the making of plastics that contains nitrogen (C3H6N6) and that's important. You see, many high protein foods are priced by the quantity of protein present; the higher the protein levels the higher the price and the way we test for protein content is my measuring nitrogen levels. But the Chinese manufacturers wanted to sell protein they didn't have and bumped up their nitrogen levels with the addition of melamine. Not good - when used as a plasticizer, even for food contact surfaces, melamine is fine (although you should never put melamine in the microwave - it can melt and enter your food). But ingesting melamine is tough on your organs - especially for infants who's systems cannot handle toxins. The Chinese government has now stepped up inspections and testing and our own FDA and FSIS have increased the number of samples pulled and tested as well.

COOL

Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (technically the: Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 expanded list of commodities). This new USDA/AMS regulation took effect on September 30, 2008. It is intended to provide consumers with information about the source of their: beef, veal, pork, lamb, goat, chicken, fish and shellfish (wild & farmed), perishable (fresh & frozen) fruits and vegetables, peanuts, pecans, macadamia nuts and ginseng. Whew! This information can be placed on a placard, sticker, twist tie, sign, band or pin tag as long as it is legible and conspicously located for the consumer. Of course there are always exceptions. All processed foods are excluded, so any food "that has undergone specific processing resulting in a change of character (e.g. cooking, curing, smoking, restructuring); or that has been combined with another food component" will not be subject to this rule. So roasted peanuts = no COOL, peanuts in shell = COOL; plain pork loin = COOL, teriyaki pork loin = no COOL. So while some are still not happy with the workings of this act, it should provide those concerned with the origins of some of the foods they eat with valuable information about the food source.

Stevia

I talked a bit about this back on my March 16th post, so for those who want to know more about this sweetener please click on that link. As of December 17, 2008, Rebaudioside A (a highly purified derivative of one of the two primary sweet glycoside compounds contained in the Stevia plant) was granted GRAS approval by the FDA for use in foods and beverages. This is great news for those seeking a natural high-intensity sweetener (200 - 300 times sweeter than sugar) that does not induce a glycemic response (no increased blood sugar levels). Cargill's tradename is Truvia and is working with Coke for the use of its product in Sprite, Odwalla and Glaceau Vitaminwaters. Whole Earth Sweetener's tradename is Purevia and they are working with Pepsi to add the sweetener to SoBe Lifewater, and Trop50. These beverages, and probably many others, should hit the market in the begining of 2009. This won't be an inexpensive sweetener given that Rebaudioside A is only 2-4% of the stevia plant (stevioside - the other sweet glycoside is 5 -10% of the plant), but its low usage rate (due both to its intensity & slight licorice taste) will make it desirable to manufacturers.

So, that is my look back at 2008. This new year looks to be just as interesting as the last and I should have plenty of topics upon which to opine. As always, send me your questions, concerns or just topics you'd like to know more about!