This message contains images. If you don't see images, click here to view. Click here to advertise in this news brief.   Mobile version   RSS   Subscribe   Unsubscribe   Archive   Media Kit Oct. 5, 2011 Home   Public Policy   Member Services   Industry Resources    Events    News & Media   About Us     USDA's plan to limit potatoes in school lunches draws reaction — from schoolchildren NPR The Agriculture Department plans to limit potato consumption among schoolchildren to two servings a week. But politicians and farmers in potato-growing states such as Maine say the spud is being unfairly targeted. As it turns out, schoolchildren have strong opinions about potatoes too. Related articles: 'Fed Up with Lunch' exposes worst school meals (USA Today) What's for children's breakfast? Cereal, soda, candy, yogurt (USA Today) More Share this article >     Vilsack: FTAs offer opportunities for jobs, economic boost Farm Futures Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, during a teleconference with reporters, said the pending free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama will support thousands of jobs and add billions of dollars of economic activity to the economy. Related article: Washington's free trade adult: John Boehner acts presidential (The Wall Street Journal) Editor's note: Members of the frozen food community can urge their elected officials to support passage of the trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama through the Friends of Frozen Food grassroots platform, accessed by clicking here. More Share this article >     Prices for food and gas soon could fall USA Today Consumers might catch a break on the price of gasoline and baked goods and sweets as the Thanksgiving-Christmas season approaches, because of a sudden tumble in worldwide commodity markets. More Share this article >     Obama goes on the attack, to Democrats' delight The Washington Post There is a noticeably more aggressive, confrontational President Barack Obama roaming the country these days, selling his jobs plan and attacking Republicans for standing in the way of progress by standing up only for the rich. More Share this article >     Opposition to Obama grows — strongly The Washington Post Four in 10 Americans "strongly" disapprove of how President Barack Obama is handling the job of president in the new Washington Post-ABC News poll, the highest that number has risen during his time in office and a sign of the hardening opposition to him as he seeks a second term. More Share this article >     With Christie not running, will Romney or Perry prosper? The Washington Post With New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie forgoing a run for the Republican presidential nomination, two questions hold the key to the future of the GOP race: Can Mitt Romney finally expand his support within the party, and can Rick Perry bounce back? More Share this article >     Poll: New low in Americans' approval of Congress The Washington Post After nine months of contentious battles on Capitol Hill, Americans have reached a new level of disgust toward Congress that has left nearly all voters angry at their leaders and doubtful they can fix the problems facing the country. More Share this article >     CFA panel eyes ramifications of food safety, nutrition cuts Food Chemical News If the funding cuts included in the two separate bills approved by the House of Representatives and Senate appropriation committees are embraced, the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service might face the decision of furloughing 350-400 of its 9,500 inspectors, Scott Lilly, a senior fellow with the Center for American Progress, warned Monday at the Consumer Federation of America's annual conference, in Washington, D.C. Related articles: Official: FDA food safety funding vulnerable (Food Safety News) CFA panel raises concerns about FDA implementation of FSMA (Food Chemical News) More Share this article >     Reid sets stage for next vote on China currency bill The Hill Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., filed a cloture motion Tuesday night to end debate on the pending Chinese currency bill. Related article: Schumer attacks Boehner over threat to block China currency bill (The Hill) More Share this article >     FDA research program led to Listeria discovery in lettuce The Wall Street Journal The recent discovery of deadly Listeria contamination in bags of chopped romaine lettuce was discovered by a federal research effort started this year to gauge food safety conditions surrounding leafy green vegetables. Related article: Lettuce recall: 90 cartons of romaine? Oops — 2,500 (The Christian Science Monitor) More Share this article >     Immigration audits and your business U.S. Politics Today The Obama administration has increased pressure on employers through immigration audits. Learn how you can protect your company from an I-9 audit. More Share this article >     Laws haven't kept pathogens out of meat, poultry The Center for Public Integrity Millions of pounds of contaminated meat and poultry still reach — and kill — consumers because of flaws in the system of industry self-regulation and federal oversight. More Share this article >     US taxpayers spent $17 billion on junk food subsidies since 1995 This Dish is Veg In September, CALPIRG released "Apples to Twinkies: Comparing Federal Subsidies of Fresh Produce and Junk Food," a report that found among billions of dollars spent each year in federal subsidies for commodity crops, a steady flow of taxpayer dollars is supporting production of corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, corn starch and soy oils. More Share this article >     FDA awards $1 million to Minnesota for food safety Minnesota Ag Connection The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has awarded the Minnesota Department of Agriculture a two-year, $1 million grant to strengthen its capacity to respond to foodborne outbreaks and other food safety events. More Share this article >     EFSA advises overhaul of pork inspections Agra-Net The European Food Safety Authority has recommended major changes to the way inspections are carried out at pork processing facilities throughout the EU, saying current methods fail to address a number of key biological and chemical hazards. More Share this article >     Convert Pallet into Carton Flow Span-Track carton flow track by UNEX ‘drops-in’ to any new or existing pallet rack structure. Span-Track’s full width roller provides more contact surface than any other carton flow. Product tested for durability within Freezer environments to deliver superior flow with product always at the pick point. Request a free sample … Digital Lumens Intelligent Lighting Systems Warehouse lighting can account for as much as 40% of the total electricity in a facility. Now there is something you can do to slash your carbon footprint and control those costs. The Digital Lumens award-winning Intelligent Lighting System combines LED fixtures with intelligence – integrated controls, sensors, networking and reporting – to reduce lighting energy use by up to 90%. MORE VISYS sorting systems Visys’ digital sorters detect and remove foreign bodies as well as defective, undesirable or contaminated product from your product streams on differences in color, biostructure, shape and/or density. Our world-class sorters incorporate the latest state-of-art technologies based on lasers, near-infrared, color, metal and x-ray sensors or any combination thereof. Exploring new opportunities for potatoes in frozen meals Northwest Farm and Ranch Report via AgInfo.net A leading provider of consumer research, Packaged Facts, is projecting sales of frozen convenience foods will grow at a rate of 2.8 percent annually during the next several years and will top $18 billion by 2015. More Share this article >     CDC: Cantaloupe outbreak death toll rises to 18 Time Federal health officials have raised the death toll to 18 in an outbreak of Listeria in cantaloupe. More Share this article >     Wal-Mart vice chair Castro-Wright to retire The Wall Street Journal Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Vice Chairman Eduardo Castro-Wright, who had presided over the retailer's U.S. store business as its sales began to slump, is retiring from the company. More Share this article >     Teens underestimate calories in fast food USA Today Teens often are clueless about the number of calories in fast food meals, underestimating the amount by hundreds of calories, a new study shows. More Share this article >     Idaho State, Scan Tech team up for food security KIFI-TV Homeland security, healthy food and safe medicine: All are huge concerns for America, and now, Idaho State University will be a national hub for making sure all of those things happen. More Share this article >     Frito-Lay unveils 'near net zero' facility FoodBev PepsiCo's Frito-​Lay North America division has celebrated the success of its most ambitious environmental sustainability project to date by confirming its Arizona facility has reached "near net zero" status. More Share this article >     Legends Foods becomes Republic of Texas Brands FoodBev Legends Foods Corporation has confirmed the approval of a proposal from president and CEO Laurence Briggs to change the name Legends Foods Corporation to Republic of Texas Brands Incorporated. More Share this article >     British scientists develop cancer-fighting broccoli FBR Scientists at the Institute of Food Research and John Innes Centre, in the U.K., have developed a heart disease- and cancer-fighting broccoli known as Beneforte, which looks the same as natural broccoli but contains higher levels of health-giving nutrient glucoraphanin. More Share this article >     Nutrition research firm launches new solution to reduce salt Food Ingredients First It is estimated that in a Western diet, approximately 75 percent of dietary sodium is derived from processed foods while only 10 percent is added by the consumer in the form of table salt. Horphag Research Nutrition is introducing a unique, natural, cost-effective salt enhancer to help lower sodium levels in processed foods. More Share this article >     Potato waste could provide 'new generation' of ingredients Food Navigator A new extraction method promises to deliver large-scale extraction of potato fibers that could help produce new ingredients and functional hydrocolloids, researchers say. More Share this article >     Survey: Food logistics providers optimistic about business Food Logistics A newly released survey of third-party logistics providers shows that logistics companies experienced improved economic conditions in 2010, with 88 percent of companies surveyed in North America meeting or exceeding their revenue projections, as compared with only 50 percent in 2009. More Share this article >     Expert: Bioplastics can challenge conventional packaging Food Production Daily Bioplastic food packaging is getting "closer and closer" to its conventional plastic counterparts and soon could challenge the market, according to European Bioplastics chairman Andy Sweetman. More Share this article >     United States Cold Storage USCS and its several predecessor companies have been providing refrigerated storage services to the food industry since 1889. Today USCS is a leading national public refrigerated warehouse operator with 34 facilities located in 12 states. MORE Sorting Food From wild to cultivated, from fresh to frozen, from whole to cut, in bulk or in bags, … we get everything sorted, whatever color or defects. MORE   Frozen Express Colby Horton, Vice President of Publishing, (469) 420-2601 Download media kit Valerie Hunt, Content Editor, (469) 420-2690    Contribute news This edition of Frozen Express was sent to ##Email##. To unsubscribe, click here. Did someone forward this edition to you? Subscribe here -- it's free! Recent issues Oct. 4, 2011 Oct. 3, 2011 Sept. 30, 2011 Sept. 29, 2011 7701 Las Colinas Ridge, Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063