- Chris MacDonald is a Toronto-based ethicist, professor, speaker and consultant.
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Category Archives: safety
Store Does End-Run Around Egg Safety
Here’s a chuckle, and a caution: Store sells cartons, gives away eggs A health food store in eastern P.E.I. is looking for a way around health regulations after provincial officials told them to stop selling eggs they buy from local … Continue reading
Posted in certifiction, ethics, health, law, marketing, safety
3 Comments
Things that Matter: Drug Residue in Chinese Pork
You could tell a lot about your average foodie or food-safety advocate by asking them to list food-related issues by level of importance. Some people tend to focus on the latest feel-good trend (e.g., at least some versions of localism) … Continue reading
Posted in activism, agriculture, animal welfare, ethics, factory farms, health, international, meat, safety
4 Comments
Using, Regulating and Testing for Antibiotics in Milk
Here’s an interesting story about efforts to regulate competitive behaviour in the food industry: By William Neuman, for the NYT: F.D.A and Dairy Industry Spar Over Testing of Milk Each year, federal inspectors find illegal levels of antibiotics in hundreds … Continue reading
Posted in agriculture, factory farms, health, milk, regulation, safety
2 Comments
A Better Factory Farm?
A few weeks ago, I asked When is a Factory Farm Not a Factory Farm? I suggested that the problem with some factory farms (including especially the ones that played a central role in the recent salmonella outbreak) is that, … Continue reading
Posted in agriculture, animal welfare, ethics, factory farms, farmers, FDA, health, industrial, regulation, safety
2 Comments
Energy Drinks
Caffeine is popular. Most North American adults consume some every day, usually delivered via a hot beverage (coffee, espresso, cappuccino, tea, etc.). It’s very likely the world’s most widely-consumed drug. But it’s also entirely unregulated. Combine that fact with the … Continue reading
The Right to Know What I’m Eating
In the debate over the labelling (or non-labelling) of genetically-modified foods, one of the most common refrains is that consumers “have a right to know” what they’re eating. I’ve commented briefly on that here before. (See “Should Companies Label Genetically … Continue reading
Posted in consumerism, GMO, labeling, restaurants, safety, values, vegetarianism
35 Comments
Salmonella in Eggs, Rabies in Dogs
It’s good to have the occasional reminder that food safety is an issue everywhere. See this item, by By Donald G. McNeil Jr. for NYT Health: Vitenam: With Rabies Deaths on the Rise, a Menu Item Gets a Closer Look. … Continue reading
Posted in health, international, meat, safety, science
Comments Off on Salmonella in Eggs, Rabies in Dogs
How Good (or Bad) is the FDA?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is the target of plenty of criticism. In fact, almost nobody seems to like the FDA — except maybe occasionally when they institute a recall or impose a penalty, and even then there’s almost … Continue reading
Posted in FDA, health, public policy, regulation, safety
3 Comments
Should Grandma Drink Bottled Water?
Here’s a thought about health warnings related to foods and food packaging. A few months ago my grandmother told me she had stopped drinking bottled water. Why? Because she had heard on the news that there are chemicals in plastic … Continue reading
Dangers of Hotdogs
This blog is relatively new, but I’ve been blogging about certain kinds of food ethics issues on my Business Ethics Blog for years. Here’s a topic that has been on my mind recently: hotdog safety. The basic problem is that … Continue reading