I’m not much of a root beer drinker. However, while traveling through the south end of Milwaukee, I happened to notice and pick up a plastic bottle of Lakefront Brewery’s Golden Maple Root Beer from the refrigerated cooler of a local cider mill. Immediately, I was intrigued: one of my favorite breweries had decided to make a root beer, and not only that, but had decided to add in maple syrup!
Lakefront Brewery’s root beer had the light amber hue of honey instead of the dark brown color that is traditionally …

Many people reading product ingredient lists see these three names quite often. What’s the connection between them, and why do they appear so often in processed foods?
What you need to know:
1. Ascorbic acid (E300) and vitamin C are one and the same, and are an essential nutrient for humans.
2. Citric acid (E330) and ascorbic acid both occur naturally in citrus fruits, but there is no vitamin C in citric acid.
3. Citric acid is responsible for the tart and sour taste of lemons, and to a lesser extent other citrus fruits …

Consumer safety articles, such as mine, often report how something seemingly innocuous will actually kill you, or at the very least, leave you maimed and crippled.  In deference to this great modern media tradition, here’s my hysteria-inducing list:
 
1. Cookie dough (and anything else containing raw eggs): In addition to the risk of E. coli discussed in the article, eating egg-containing dough prior to baking it puts you at risk for Salmonella.
 
2. Fish: Sushi, sashimi, and ceviche can carry multiple parasites.  My favorite is Diphyllobothrium latum, an intestinal tapeworm transmitted by …

 Wine contains approximately 1000 components of which water citric .2 to .7, lactic .2 – 3, malic 4.5, sorbic, acetic .5 to .7, glucinic traces, succinic up to 1,) residual sugar .8 – 180 grams/L, sulphates, chlorides, glycerol, acetaldehyde, phenols or phenolics to which tannins belong, phosphates, potassium, copper, iron, carbon dioxide, and sulphur dioxide.
The composition depends on grape variety, the soil on which it grew, composition of the soil, ripeness of the fruit at picking, winemaking technique and aging before bottling.
Alcoholic fermentation transforms sugar to alcohol, while malolactic fermentation …

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The Public Health Bureau of Taipei County yesterday deferred the fining of fast food chains that had used arsenic-tainted oil so as to avoid violating the “No Double Sanctions Jeopardy Clause,” local media reported. As such, the amounts to charge McDonald’s and Domino’s Pizza are yet to be determined, pending the outcome of the current investigation led by the Banciao District Prosecutors Office, added media.
The provision under Article 26 of the Administrative Penalty Act stipulates that any person cannot be penalized twice for the same offense.
Should a …

The market for specialty ingredients remains an attractive one for the food companies looking out for adding innovations to their products. Adding these ingredients can be extremely valuable as it can help them to differentiate their product from those of their competitors and allow them to have a positive consumer image in the market.
Specialty ingredients are defined by their ability to impart a distinct performance benefit to a formulated product. They often provide benefits that can be used in the marketing of the product and adding the extra benefit for …

WHEELING, W.Va., July 17 — The FDA has clarified how it plans to regulate drug additives intended to thwart counterfeiting and make it easier for authorities, providers, and consumers to spot fake prescription drugs.
The agency issued a draft guidance to industry this week covering anticounterfeiting measures that legitimate manufacturers might use to authenticate their products.
In particular, it addresses so-called physical-chemical identifiers — unique, hard-to-duplicate, readily detected additives that would distinguish drugs made at approved facilities from cheap, unlicensed fakes — placed on or in pills and capsules.
The scale of counterfeiting …

Organic farming worldwide is partly a product of the 1990s boom times when that market grew rapidly. But now, because of the USA’s deep recession, according to the July 17th, 2009 Reuters article, “Embattled organic sector worries about regulation,”  some farmers are worried and/or angry about the future of organic farming due to new food safety rules emanating from Washington.
Will organic farmers be able to afford the higher costs of keeping the government-required more detailed records of running an organic farm as consumers search for lower-cost, safer, high-quality organic foods? …

The fifth edition of Nutraceutical Summit 2009, one of the leading events to represent country’s Nutraceutical industry will be held on October 28-30, 2009, at The Lalit in New Delhi. The summit is organised by the premier scientific bodies of India, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) and Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), jointly with MM Activ Sci-tech Communication Co and in association with leading associations like Pharmexcil, Health Foods and Dietary Supplements Association (Hadsa), the Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA), Ayurvedic Drug Manufacturers’ Association (ADMA), Organisation of …

Along with fresh fruits and vegetables, all-natural and organic products are sprouting up at local farmers markets as more buyers and sellers think green.
One such purveyor is Home Grown Design Foods in Converse, which specializes in all-natural, 100 percent gluten-free salsas, sauces, seasonings, jams, cornmeal and baking mixes.
Owner Sally Drew, who purchased Lamb Stone Ground Cornmeal from the Lamb heirs, started HGD Foods in 2003.
“We had a family member (who) found out that she had to eat gluten-free,” Drew said. “So when we started doing blending and mixing, we just …