Sludge Watch ==> McCains - history of Glass in their French Fries

[maureen.reilly at sympatico.ca]

Sludgewatch Admin

While we are talking about sludge and the failure of food safety, lets think 
about the potato.  Yes, McCains - The French Fry People (now 'Freedom Fries' 
to some of yous guys)  got lots of complaints..like the ones below, of glass 
in their potatoes and french fries. Turns out that farmers were using glass 
contaminated composts and the potatoes had encapsulated the glass chunks 
that ended up in the potatoes and frozen french fries.  Now McCains 
stipulates what ammendments can be used by the farmers that sell spuds 
destined for the McCain label.

Consumers need that same level of safety by having the food they buy 
stipulate whether is was grown with sludge.  If McCains needs informed 
choice, so do consumers as a whole.

I've been looking at some sewage sludge sitting in fields in Newberry 
Springs California.  This sludge is called Class A EQ.  It has condoms and 
plastic tampon applicators in it.  Imagine that in your french fries!  Fries 
with chewy treats?  Fries with pink plastic applicators?  There are no crop 
restrictions on the use of Class A sewage sludge.

Pass the ketchup.

And pass the legislation on mandatory  labelling of food grown with sludge.


.............................................................

GLASS AGAIN FOUND IN POTATO PRODUCT: SECOND LOCAL INCIDENT PUZZLES MCCAIN 
OFFICIAL December 11, 2000

The Standard (St. Catharines - Niagara)

Maija Saari

A second complaint from St. Catharines about glass in a processed potato 
product is, according to this story, puzzling an official at McCain Foods in 
New Brunswick. Marion Boyko, 56, of St. Catharines was cited as saying she 
found a two-centimetre sliver of glass in a mouthful of McCain frozen 
hashbrowns about three weeks ago and that she retrieved the piece before 
swallowing it, adding, "That was the end of dinner. I pitched the rest.'' 
Boyko put the glass in a baggie with plans to mail it to McCain Foods. She 
said she kept forgetting about it until her son alerted her to a story in 
The Standard last Wednesday about the Cook family of St. Catharines, who 
found glass in a bag of McCain Crinkle Cut french fries in October and had 
contacted the company.

Contacted Friday at McCain Foods offices in New Brunswick, director of 
public relations Scoop Fredstrom was surprised and concerned to hear about 
the second incident and that cases like this are investigated by the company 
in consultation with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Fredstrom was 
quoted as saying it was "extremely weird'' to have two cases of foreign 
objects being found in different products that wouldn't be prepared on the 
same manufacturing line. In a letter to the Cook family, which included free 
coupons for McCain products, company officials said the only glass in the 
french fry production area is the safety glass on the lightbulbs, which are 
sealed behind plastic shields.


Foodsafetynetwork.ca

.................................................................

Dioxin fears shut Dutch farms
- -------------------------------
Over 160 dairy and livestock farms in Holland have been temporarily shut
down, following the discovery of dioxin contamination in some of the
feed given to the animals.

The problem first came to light in October 2004, when routine sampling
of Dutch milk picked up unacceptably high levels of dioxins. An
investigation by the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority soon
traced this back to a dairy farm in Lelystad, which was immediately
isolated. Further investigations found the source of contamination to be
potato peelings supplied by a McCain's potato processing plant.

"On Nov 2 2004, it was confirmed that the potato industry by-product had
been contaminated by marly clay used in the washing and sorting
process," said Dutch agriculture minister Cees Veerman in a letter to
the parliament. This clay had been supplied by a German company.

As well as isolating the original dairy farm, plus one other found to
have bought contaminated potato peelings, the food safety authority also
suspended all trade in potato by-products by McCain. However, it then
emerged that contaminated peel was also sold to various livestock farms.
As a consequence, some 162 pig, cattle, sheep, and goat farms in Holland
have also been temporarily closed. "These farms remain under government
supervision until test results have demonstrated that the dioxin levels
in the meat do not exceed threshold levels," said Mr. Veerman.

The Dutch authorities insist that there is no danger to the public from
consuming milk. Any of the contaminated milk would have been diluted by
clean supplies at the processor. It also claims that the potato products
from McCain intended for human consumption, while having slightly raised
background levels of dioxin, do not pose a health risk. The dioxin
problem is believed to have spread to Belgium and Germany, with more
farms closed in those 2 countries.

The EU commission's food chain committee will meet next week [week
beginning 8 Nov 2004] to review progress in tracking and containing the
problem.

[Byline: Philip Clarke, Europe editor]

Sludgewatch Admin: potato products with 'raised' levels of dioxin.  I us