Beware of Foreign Dishware

[ocm]

That brightly colored pottery you bought on your last vacation looks
great on the shelf - and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sug-
gests that you keep it there. Ceramics produced in countries other
than the United States, France, and the United Kingdom may be
sealed with glazes that can release lead when they come in contact
with acidic foods such as wine, fruit juices, tomato sauces, and vine-
gar.
The FDA says that ceramic pitchers and coffee cups are of the most con-
cern. If your dishware was made in Mexico, China, Hong Kong, India, or
Italy, display it proudly, but don't use it with food.



(I'm just glad it comes with a country of origin label. Imagine how hard it would be to avoid toxic substances that are banned in the US if we didn't have country of origin labeling)

ocm

 

[mrj]

Do NOT trust totally in the USA labeled pottery being lead free!

It has been in the last year that I read warnings for US produced pottery.

The problem is that small, local potters may not follow the rules and/or that older and antique pottery made before the lead problem was understood is available and sold in the USA.

This problem is so similar to the problems of bacteria and other health threats to our beef supply that we need to consider what we can do that will benefit our cattle/beef industry even more than simply labeling as to country of origin.

ocm's simplistic and faulty comment is sort of like telling consumers they can place total faith in the safety of beef carrying the "USA BEEF" label when there obviously will be errors and even some malfeasance or dereliction of duty in assuring that USA produced beef truly is safe just by virtue of being produced in this country.

It is virtually impossible to assure there will NEVER be a piece of tainted beef sold even when everyone involved is doing their best to provide the safest beef possible. Humans do make errors. Bacteria do mutate and hide from us.

We, as cattle producers, MUST continue to improve our system by working with ALL segments of the cattle/beef industry AND consumers to all do our part to make US beef as safe as possible. THAT is how we have reduced the incidence of e Coli infections so dramatically in so few years.

That does not include blaming others for any and all instances where there are problems. It means ALL working together to find the source and do what needs to be done to end or at least to improve the problem, IMO.

MRJ

 

[Anonymous]

Do NOT trust totally in the USA labeled pottery being lead free!

It has been in the last year that I read warnings for US produced pottery.

The problem is that small, local potters may not follow the rules and/or that older and antique pottery made before the lead problem was understood is available and sold in the USA.

This problem is so similar to the problems of bacteria and other health threats to our beef supply that we need to consider what we can do that will benefit our cattle/beef industry even more than simply labeling as to country of origin.

ocm's simplistic and faulty comment is sort of like telling consumers they can place total faith in the safety of beef carrying the "USA BEEF" label when there obviously will be errors and even some malfeasance or dereliction of duty in assuring that USA produced beef truly is safe just by virtue of being produced in this country.

It is virtually impossible to assure there will NEVER be a piece of tainted beef sold even when everyone involved is doing their best to provide the safest beef possible. Humans do make errors. Bacteria do mutate and hide from us.

We, as cattle producers, MUST continue to improve our system by working with ALL segments of the cattle/beef industry AND consumers to all do our part to make US beef as safe as possible. THAT is how we have reduced the incidence of e Coli infections so dramatically in so few years.

That does not include blaming others for any and all instances where there are problems. It means ALL working together to find the source and do what needs to be done to end or at least to improve the problem, IMO.

MRJ

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

Have you found out yet why your NCBA mentors forgot to tell you about allowing Mandatory COOL to become law concerning shrimp and fish :???: Or about how well its working for their industries?

 

[Bill]

Beware of foreign dishware or anything else that is foreign, isn't that the real message ocm?


It's odd that R-Pott missed Canada and the "tainted" pottery that surely must be coming from up here! :roll:

 

[Sandhusker]

Do NOT trust totally in the USA labeled pottery being lead free!

It has been in the last year that I read warnings for US produced pottery.

The problem is that small, local potters may not follow the rules and/or that older and antique pottery made before the lead problem was understood is available and sold in the USA.

This problem is so similar to the problems of bacteria and other health threats to our beef supply that we need to consider what we can do that will benefit our cattle/beef industry even more than simply labeling as to country of origin.

ocm's simplistic and faulty comment is sort of like telling consumers they can place total faith in the safety of beef carrying the "USA BEEF" label when there obviously will be errors and even some malfeasance or dereliction of duty in assuring that USA produced beef truly is safe just by virtue of being produced in this country.

It is virtually impossible to assure there will NEVER be a piece of tainted beef sold even when everyone involved is doing their best to provide the safest beef possible. Humans do make errors. Bacteria do mutate and hide from us.

We, as cattle producers, MUST continue to improve our system by working with ALL segments of the cattle/beef industry AND consumers to all do our part to make US beef as safe as possible. THAT is how we have reduced the incidence of e Coli infections so dramatically in so few years.

That does not include blaming others for any and all instances where there are problems. It means ALL working together to find the source and do what needs to be done to end or at least to improve the problem, IMO.

MRJ

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

Have you found out yet why your NCBA mentors forgot to tell you about allowing Mandatory COOL to become law concerning shrimp and fish :???: Or about how well its working for their industries?

\

It's called towing the party line to the point of absurdity. It reminds me of these anti-profiling types. Even though the majority of our problems and potential problems are from young Arab males, we can't look harder at them because an Irish red-headed grandmother could make a bomb, too.

Speaking of NCBA, have you read the OIG report yet, Maxine?

 

[Mike]

FROM THE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL WEBSITE:

Drinking water, food, and alcohol are sources of environmental exposure to lead.
Lead may contaminate water, food, and alcohol, but the contaminant cannot be seen, tasted, or smelled (ATSDR 1999). Lead occurs in drinking water through leaching from lead-containing pipes, faucets, and solder, which can be found in plumbing of older buildings. Leaching rates accelerate when water is acidic or hot or when it has been standing in the pipes for extended periods (e.g., overnight). EPA disclosed that for calendar year 1996, 6 million people in the United States were served by public water systems reporting violations of the Lead and Copper Rule (EPA's maximum level for lead in public drinking water systems is 15 µg/L; EPA 1996). Other potential sources of lead contamination include brass fixtures, older drinking-water coolers, and older coffee urns (Mushak et al. 1989). Boiling of water will not get rid of lead, but flushing standing water from the lines and faucet for a few minutes before use and using cold water for drinking will minimize exposure.

Lead may contaminate food during production, processing, and packaging. Production sources may include root vegetables' uptake from soil lead or atmospheric lead deposition into leafy vegetables (Mushak et al. 1989). Until the US phaseout of lead-soldered food cans during the 1980s, canned food was a major source of lead in the diets of Americans. Although some plastic food wrappers may be printed with lead-containing pigments, and although some food cans produced and sold in foreign countries may be lead soldered, the amount of lead in Americans' diets has declined substantially. In the early 1980s, adults ingested approximately 56 µg/day of lead in food; estimates from the early 1990s ranged from 1.8 to 4.2 µg/day (ATSDR 1999).

Other sources of food contamination include some ceramic tableware (especially imported), lead-glazed pottery, leaded-crystal glassware, certain "natural" calcium supplements, and bright red and yellow paints on bread bags (ATSDR 1999; Mushak et al. 1989). Lead-glazed pottery, particularly if it is imported, is a potential source of exposure that is often overlooked. Even "safe" pottery and ceramic ware can become harmful to human health. For example, dishwashing may chip or wear off the protective glaze and expose people to lead-containing pigments. Other sources of lead exposure include wine and homemade alcohol (e.g., moonshine) that is distilled and/or stored in leaded containers.

http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HEC/CSEM/lead/exposure_pathways.html


Drinking all that gin from "IMPORTED" leaded crystal has got to be the problem. :???:

 

[ocm]

My risk doesn't go to zero if I avoid the imported stuff, but IT DEFINITELY GOES DOWN.

 

[mrj]

Boys, must you get so grouchy when I post information you do not like but cannot refute?

OT, only you and your anti-NCBA extremists could infer from my concern that we dare not tell consumers that only imported beef is prone to bacterial infections that could cause health problems if they eat it!

My concern, and considerable work to improve the situation at local, state, and national levels, has been and continues to be that we must work together as the cattle/beef industry to make our beef the safest it can reasonably be.

We must also be honest with people including packing plant employees, retail employees, food service workers, and consumers and enlist their help to eliminate the bacterial problems originating with those people and in the workplace, retail outlets, restaurants, the home, and any other place food is prepared and eaten.

We cannot guarantee every piece of beef sold will be 'pristine' and absolutely free of every possible contaminant or bacteria. We may be able to come very close if we radiate it......but many of you have claimed that is just a short-cut means to let evil packers sell 'dirty' meat.

I see it more as an extra step we can take to come closer to the ultimate guarantee of safe meat, and the safety of the process is working with MANY other foods.

In reality, OT, the cattle I have seen in SD run the gamut of quality....though most I've seen are of high quality, including ours, FYI!

However, we have travelled by car through many states and have seen LOTS of very questionnable looking cattle, along with the better quality, rarely in the same herds, BTW.

Your comprehension is sadly lacking if you got from my post that I believe all, or even a large amount of US produced beef is 'tainted'. That absolutely is NOT what I said.

Which is it, that you do not admit, or that you do not care, that SOME beef produced in the USA is of very low quality and questionnable safety; and that even the best US beef can, in spite of the best intentions and practices, become contaminated with bacteria and other problematic substances? Why do you deny the possibility? Denial causes people to fail to properly work to eliminate or prevent such problems.

Sandhusker, what is the date of that OIG report? Can you give me the link to it?

BTW, are you VERY sure that NCBA had done nothing to push USDA toward correcting problems? Are you CERTAIN that the new man has changed nothing yet?

SOME national organizations do not make public accusations via press conference and expect to change and improve the quality of the work of USDA and other agencies by publid attack! Sometimes privately, quietly, but firmly offering effective, reasonable suggestions for improvement is more successful. Watch and see.

Mike, you more or less prove my point: That it is NOT just imports that can present health hazards, and that consumers must take a measure of responsibility for our own health and safety.

MRJ

 

[Mike]

990568 US Meat Rules May See NAFTA, WTO Challenge
May 27, 1999
Washington - Canada will respond, through trade-rule challenges or tit-for- tat restrictions, if the United States requires country-of-origin labels on meat, according to a letter made public this week.

A handful of bills were pending in the U.S. House and Senate to require the special labels. Cattle ranchers believe U.S. consumers would buy American meat if given the chance. About nine percent of the U.S. meat supply is imported.

Some 1.1 million head of cattle were shipped from Canada for slaughter in U.S. packing plants last year. A National Cattlemen's Beef Association official said the cattle were "laundered" because the meat was sold with a U.S. inspection stamp.

"If these proposals proceed, Canada will not hesitate to invoke its rights" under the North American Free Trade Agreement or the World Trade Organization, Ambassador Raymond Chretien wrote.

Chairman Richard Lugar, Indiana Republican, read the May 21 letter aloud during a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on the proposals. It said the U.S. proposals were inconsistent with U.S. trade commitments and could imperil $2.4 billion in bilateral cattle and red meat trade.

"Enactment of additional mandatory country of origin labeling requirements will encourage other countries to implement similar measures," the ambassador wrote, before noting Canada bought $350 million a year in U.S. beef.

"To our friends in Canada, I say, tough luck, Ottawa," said Senator Tim Johnson, South Dakota Democrat, an early advocate of the labels. "We need to do what's right for our consumers."

Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman, who testified at the hearing, did not take a position on the legislation. He said if legislation was pursued, it should be carefully drawn so it would not cause trade friction.

 

[Sandhusker]

MRJ, "Sandhusker, what is the date of that OIG report? Can you give me the link to it?

www.gao.gov/new.items/d06532t.pdf
harkin.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=258771
beef-mag.com/mag/beef_failing_grade

MRJ, "BTW, are you VERY sure that NCBA had done nothing to push USDA toward correcting problems? Are you CERTAIN that the new man has changed nothing yet?"

Yes, I am very sure. Why don't you contact the NCBA office and ask them what they have done?

MRJ, "SOME national organizations do not make public accusations via press conference and expect to change and improve the quality of the work of USDA and other agencies by publid attack! Sometimes privately, quietly, but firmly offering effective, reasonable suggestions for improvement is more successful. Watch and see."

Whatever..... :roll: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: What has NCBA done quietly, privately, whatever on the problems outlined in the report?

 

[RobertMac]

We, as cattle producers, MUST continue to improve our system by working with ALL segments of the cattle/beef industry AND consumers to all do our part to make US beef as safe as possible. THAT is how we have reduced the incidence of e Coli infections so dramatically in so few years.

The "reduced the incidence of e Coli infections" has occurred because of mandatory increased testing for E coli and FSIS becoming proactive in the review of testing and monitoring of plant HACCP plans. The biggest impact the industry can have on the problem of E coli is on the kill floor where the majority of contamination occurs.

 

[Econ101]

There has been no change at GIPSA, just the usual musical chairs.

Maxine, the OIG report went out to GIPSA in Dec. 05 and to the public in Jan. 06. The agency is given 30 days review before the public. Several people have been looling (investigative reporters) for JoAnn Waterfield and she is nowhere to be found. If you know where she is, please let us know.

Tom Harkin called for an investigation of the OGC (attorneys at the Office of General Counsel) because of some of the shennanigans uncovered. That report has not come out yet but there are some reservations as to whether it ever will. Too many people (NCBAers included) want to hide from the truth.

MRJ, please don't get lead poisoning.

Get the lead out.

 

[Econ101]

MRJ, "Sandhusker, what is the date of that OIG report? Can you give me the link to it?

www.gao.gov/new.items/d06532t.pdf
harkin.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=258771
beef-mag.com/mag/beef_failing_grade

MRJ, "BTW, are you VERY sure that NCBA had done nothing to push USDA toward correcting problems? Are you CERTAIN that the new man has changed nothing yet?"

Yes, I am very sure. Why don't you contact the NCBA office and ask them what they have done?

MRJ, "SOME national organizations do not make public accusations via press conference and expect to change and improve the quality of the work of USDA and other agencies by publid attack! Sometimes privately, quietly, but firmly offering effective, reasonable suggestions for improvement is more successful. Watch and see."

Whatever..... :roll: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: What has NCBA done quietly, privately, whatever on the problems outlined in the report?

MRJ is just so used to being spoon fed, she just has to have help digesting this information.

 

[S.S.A.P.]

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

One month earlier Oldtimer wrote:

........ I, like the good Doc, believe it is a gamble..... Eat only what I raise and feed again.......

 

[Anonymous]

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

One month earlier Oldtimer wrote:

........ I, like the good Doc, believe it is a gamble..... Eat only what I raise and feed again.......

Yep SSAP- Since we don't have M-COOL law you can't tell if your eating US beef or Canuck beef-- at least I know what I raise has not been fed any tainted or prohibited products and has 0 risk= which I can't say for sure about other beef...Then if you add in that Canadian beef is thrown in the generic pot and passed off as US product, the risk factor goes way up- the reason the good Doc buys them from people he knows, so he can guarantee it is not Canuck...

 

[Econ101]

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

One month earlier Oldtimer wrote:

........ I, like the good Doc, believe it is a gamble..... Eat only what I raise and feed again.......

Yep SSAP- Since we don't have M-COOL law you can't tell if your eating US beef or Canuck beef-- at least I know what I raise has not been fed any tainted or prohibited products and has 0 risk= which I can't say for sure about other beef...Then if you add in that Canadian beef is thrown in the generic pot and passed off as US product, the risk factor goes way up- the reason the good Doc buys them from people he knows, so he can guarantee it is not Canuck...

....or trimmings off of Australia beef after the good stuff was sold to Japan.

 

[RoperAB]

Why dont you sell Canadian gasoline in separate "Canadian" fuel pumps. :lol:

 

[Econ101]

Why dont you sell Canadian gasoline in separate "Canadian" fuel pumps. :lol:

Hey, if you can produce it at 25 per barrel, and sell at maybe an equivalent price at 50 per barrel/gas wouldn't be a bad idea for the U.S. Canadians would sure get some good will points.

Roper I have a real problem buying Australian when we can't ship to the markets the Aussies can ship to.

Doesn't seem quite right. But then we let the packers run the beef policy at the USDA.

 

[Anonymous]

Why dont you sell Canadian gasoline in separate "Canadian" fuel pumps. :lol:

I didn't know you had BSE gasoline too :wink:

 

[S.S.A.P.]

Maxine- You are the most questionable- anti US beef person I have ever known...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ? Is the cattle raised around you in SD so despicable that you question all US raised beef :???:

One month earlier Oldtimer wrote:

........ I, like the good Doc, believe it is a gamble..... Eat only what I raise and feed again.......

Yep SSAP- Since we don't have M-COOL law you can't tell if your eating US beef or Canuck beef-- at least I know what I raise has not been fed any tainted or prohibited products and has 0 risk= which I can't say for sure about other beef...Then if you add in that Canadian beef is thrown in the generic pot and passed off as US product, the risk factor goes way up- the reason the good Doc buys them from people he knows, so he can guarantee it is not Canuck...

at least I know what I raise has not been fed any tainted or prohibited products and has 0 risk= which I can't say for sure about other beef...

Oldtimer ...Have you NO faith in any of the beef produced in the US ??

How can you say it has 0 risk when you have wrote such things as: (and this is just a few samples of what you've agreed with)

- I have to agree with you- from all I've read about this "atypical" the science and USDA are in wonderland- not having any firm knowledge of it .... that it could be related to sporadic CJD .... some intense research needs to be done to see what the connections may be...


- Like you said they don't yet know how our strain (atypical) is transmitted- what if its thru the urine/or a STD? What good will your feedban do? How will the feedban protect your Canadian herd then? What if your neighbors new imported US cows pee across the fence toward yours

- Feedbans are good- but not flawless ... quarantine is best when playing with dangerous diseases- especially those that create a danger to humans.....

- (About "atypical" BSE) - especially when they have no clues on what causes or how this strain is spread? As these tests are refined and developed, how many more strains will be discovered? Looks to me like another good reason to keep quarantines on all live cattle movements- until they get some transmission answers...

- until they have some better answers to what is causing this spread

- Do you have no concerns about this "atypical"- since they have little or no idea how the diseases is transmitted, manifests itself, or why it even exists

- I think it would be just better for all concerned to keep their own in their own backyard- especially now with the lack of knowledge on these "atypicals"....

- While I've been very critical of the USDA's testing program- and believe we should not be cutting back in testing and should be allowing Creekstone etal to test-- I have to give them a little slack on the earlier cattle- since they've been found to be "atypical" and are much harder to diagnose with any test...

Yes - sir! Oldtimer's beef is the only beef with 0 risk .... "other beef"; American and Canadian is obviously risky he says because of the reasons listed above. Seems to me he has been unsuccessful at getting the consumer majority to avoid Canadian cattle and beef and is now including the US industry (producers) in his fear-mongering.

As a Canadian, I have found his posts insulting and blatantly misleading - to the American readers, I think you have just become his next target of attack.