The following is a recall notice from Food Standards Australia new Zealand and is included here with permission.

Bondi Protein – Vegan Protein Bar Peanut Butter 

Date published: 04 February 2022

Product information

Yours Truly Chocolates is conducting a recall of Bondi Protein Vegan Protein Bar Peanut Butter. The product has been available for sale at Chemist Warehouses n​ationally.

Date markings

Best Before: BB 161222A, BB 161222C, BB 161222E

Problem

The recall is due to the presence of an undeclared allergen (tree nut [cashew]).

Food safety hazard

Any consumers who have a (tree nut [cashew]) allergy or intolerance may have a reaction if the product is consumed.

Country of origin – Australia

What to do​

Consumers who have a (tree nut [cashew]) allergy or intolerance should not consume this product and should return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund.

For further information please contact:

Yours Truly Chocolates

0401969743

www.yourstrulychocolates.com.au

The following is an update for food businesses from Queensland Health about close contacts to those with COVID-19.

COVID-19 update – 24 January 2022

Close contacts returning to work

The Queensland Government has changed some requirements for businesses critical to the fresh food supply chain.

These measures will help close contact workers resume critical roles to support the fresh food supply chain, while ensuring safety in workplaces through additional COVID-19 monitoring.

Workers must provide a negative Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) prior to beginning their first day back at work and on every second day (as well as the day 6 test to end quarantine). RAT tests are to be provided by the employer. A list of suppliers has been provided on the eHub.

All critically essential workers must be symptom free, fully vaccinated and have had a booster dose, if eligible.

From today, the Critically Essential Roles List (a brief description of the roles, not a list of named individuals) must be submitted to the COVID-19 services portal rather than to an email address. You do not need to resubmit information through the portal, if you have recently submitted information through the email address.

Employers must also maintain a Critical Worker List of the names of close contacts performing essential roles.

Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

E info@daf.qld.gov.au W www.daf.qld.gov.au

The following is a release from Food Standards Australia New Zealand about the release of the report of the recent added sugars nutritional labelling review. It is included here with permission from Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

Review of nutrition labelling for added sugars report released

We recently released the findings of our review of nutrition labelling for added sugars.

The review was undertaken at the request of food ministers with the aim of ensuring food labels provide adequate contextual information about sugars to enable consumers to make informed choices in support of dietary guidelines.

Ministers requested FSANZ review three policy options:

1. quantifying added sugars in the nutrition information panel (NIP) (preferred by ministers)
2. applying a pictorial about sugar to sugary beverages/sugar-sweetened beverages, and
3. changing the statement of ingredients to identify sugars-based ingredients.

Our review concluded that although complex, there are no technical barriers to including added sugars in the NIP. FSANZ expects to begin work early this year on a proposal to consider amending the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Food Standards Code) with regard to added sugars information in the NIP.

The full report can be viewed at https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/labelling/Documents/Review%20of%20nutrition%20labelling%20for%20added%20sugars.pdf

The following is the latest media release from the Food Safety Information Council  about the importance of handwashing, and is included here with permission.

As children start to go back to school, the Food Safety Information Council is asking parents to make sure their children know how to wash their hands correctly.

Cathy Moir, Council Chair, said that an international survey published by the Global Hygiene Council (GHC) in 2020 found that 42%of children between the ages of 5 and 10 did not know how to properly wash their hands while at school. This survey assessed primary school students from across seven countries, including the UK, Indonesia, China, Australia, Saudi Arabia, India and South Africa.

‘Also, our own research in August 2021 found a 15% decrease in the number of times Australians over 18 washed or sanitised their hands a day, on average, since the same time the previous year so this is also a timely reminder for adults to remember to wash their hands frequently,’ Ms Moir said.

‘To reduce their risk of food poisoning (and COVID-19 infection) children should always wash their hands with soap and running water for 20 seconds and thoroughly dry them (or use hand sanitiser if hand washing facilities aren’t available) on these occasions:

• before handling, preparing and eating food
• after using the toilet
• after blowing their nose
• after touching a pet
• after returning home.

‘To remind Australia of the importance of good hand hygiene, the Food Safety Information Council has made an education package available including videos and posters for both adults and children that give 4 simple tips for washing hands correctly. We also strongly encourage schools to take the Glitterbug challenge to see how well children wash their hands with a fun scientific experiment using a UV torch. The package can be downloaded from our website here and we encourage people to watch the video and to put up the posters at home, in their workplace, or at school,’ Ms Moir concluded.

This year we have partnered with our supporter Provisual to get handwashing and other food safety information into school canteens and tuckshops and we also encourage all schools to order Provisual’s free canteen posters from here.

In addition, here are 6 tips for parents about how to prepare a safe lunch for their children:

1. When buying lunchboxes or insulated lunch bags, choose those that have room for a frozen water bottle or freezer block and are easy to clean and dry.
2. Always wash and dry your hands thoroughly before preparing food, and wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly.
3. Always use clean utensils and a clean chopping board when preparing school lunches.
4. Make sure ready-to-eat lunchbox foods are always kept separated from raw foods in the refrigerator, particularly raw meats, chicken, eggs, and seafood.
5. Keep the lunch cool in the fridge until you are ready to leave home, then put an ice brick or frozen drink in the lunchbox or cooler bag to keep it cold until lunchtime.
6. During hot weather you may want to consider providing safer lunchbox alternatives that can be safely stored at room temperature, such as hard or processed cheese, vegetables or tuna in a can.
7. Discard any higher risk foods such as sushi, salads, meat, cut fruits, poultry, rice or eggs if your child brings them home uneaten.

The Food Safety Information Council would like to thank their members OnSolution and Accord Australasia for their support for this campaign through charitable donations. We’d also like to thank the students and staff at St Aloysius College in Adelaide for their assistance in making the Glitterbug video.

Media contacts:
Lydia Buchtmann, Food Safety Information Council, 0407 626 688 or info@foodsafety.asn.au

Craig Brock, Accord, 0422 363 646

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd Butter and Spreadable Butter Blend Products 

​Date published: 19 January 2022

Product information

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd is conducting a recall of various butter and spreadable butter blend products. The products have been available for sale nationally at various outlets including Woolworths, Coles, ALDI, independent supermarkets and Costco.

Problem –The recall is due to a potential microbial contamination.

Food safety hazard –Food products with a microbial contamination may cause illness if consumed.

Country of origin –Australia

What to do​

Consumers should not eat these products. Any consumers concerned about their health​ should seek medical advice. Consumers should return the products to the place of purchase for a full refund.

For further information please contact: Saputo Dairy Australia customer service team 1800 032 479

So have you ever eaten insects? For much of the world eating insects is a regular part of diets. In the western diet, insects are not common, but are starting to appear.

In the USA recently there was a rush to add insects to a lot of ready to eat foods like pizza and tacos. This was done as part of a way by clever businesses to use the many cicadas during their periodic 17 year emergence.

There are increasing restaurants in Australia now adding insects to their menus.

This is great because insects use significantly less resources to produce more protein weight for weight than all meat producing animals. So they are a very sustainale method of delivering the protein we all need in our diets.

There are only two problems at the end of the day in insects being a regular part of our diets.

The first is getting the western public to be comfortable with eating ants, grasshoppers, cicadas, termites, spiders, cockroaches and other “creepy crawlies”.

The first set in developing this comfort is to use flour made from insects in current products, so the protein is going into the foods but people do not see the legs  and other bits to make them aware that they are in fact eating insects. This is already happening in the food industry.

The second difficulty is that there is a high likelihood that there will be people who will have an allergy to eating insects. Study is being done to determine if there those who are allergic to crustaceans are also allergic to insects, as both are related to the protein in the exoskeleton.

Labelling is already appearing on products about this link.Studies are continuing to determine if there is a link.

More information can be found at;

https://issuu.com/foodaust/docs/food_australia_jan-mar_2022_digital_single_final?fr=sMDU0NzQ1NjgwODU

The following is a new recall notice from Food Standards Australia New Zealand and is included here with permission.

Fresh Food Enterprises IQ Bars 

​Date published: 14 January 2022

Product information

Fresh Food Enterprises is conducting a recall of IQ Bar Chocolate Sea Salt 45g, IQ Bar Peanut Butter Chip 45g and IQ Bar Almond Butter Chip 45g. The product has been available for sale at independent stores and IGA supermarkets in NSW, ACT, VIC and TAS.

Date markings

• Q Bar Chocolate Sea Salt 45g BB June 10 2022
• IQ Bar Peanut Butter Chip 45g BB June 11 2022
• IQ Bar Almond Butter Chip 45g BB Apr 14 2022

Problem – The recall is due to the presence of an undeclared allergen (milk).

Food safety hazard

Any consumers who have a milk allergy or intolerance may have a reaction if these products are consumed.

Country of origin – USA

What to do​

Consumers who have a milk allergy or intolerance should not consume these products and should return the products to the place of purchase for a full refund.

For further information please contact:

Fresh Food Enterprises – Free call 1800 731 845  https://freshfood.net.au​

With supermarket shelves empty due to food industry staff being required to stay home because they are close contacts of someone who has CVOVID-19, the governments across the country have realised that there need to be changes to the rules around close contacts.

In Queensland now, those who are double vaccinated and a close contact of someone with COVID-19 are able to go to work if they are considered as a essential worker and are asymptomatic. They will need to wear full PPE and only travel to and from work in their private vehicle. They can only go to work and straight back home. They must also  have  a Rapid Assay Test done on Day 6 to confirm that they remain asymptomatic. Any sign of symptoms at all and they must not come to work.

This will hopefully mean that our supermarket shelves are restocked and that the raw materials needed for manufacturing are received by our factories.

With all the rules we now have to follow to protect us and the community from COVID-19, and with those rules and requirements changing frequently, is very easy to lose track with what we are supposed to do and when.

Always go to the recognised places for information to ensure that it is the most up to date and correct, the Queensland Health website https://www.qld.gov.au/health/conditions/health-alerts/coronavirus-covid-19 is the place for information in this state. Be aware that things can change  rapidly which can have big impacts, so checking this site regularly each day is a good idea.

Each food business should have a dedicated person who is responsible for checking this site each day and reporting whatever changes have happened. It is also essential that each business has a clear and direct way of communicating changes to all staff and that there are records of this communication.

The following is a recall notice from Food Standards Australia New Zealand and is included here with permission.

Nerada Detox Tea with added Probiotics 

​​​Date published: 31 December 2021

Product information

Nerada Tea Pty Ltd is conducting a recall of Detox Tea with added Probiotics (20 Tea Bags) 30g. The product has been available for sale online and at independent grocery stores including IGA nationally.

Date markings – Best before: 04/11/22, 29/03/23, 01/06/23

Problem – The recall is due to microbial contamination (Salmonella).

Food safety hazard – Food products contaminated with Salmonella may cause illness if consumed.

Country of origin – Australia

What to do​

Any consumers concerned about their health should seek medical advice and should return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund.

For further information please contact:

Nerada Tea Pty Ltd +61 7 3272 0444 www.neradatea.com.au