Food Industries
Strasburger & Siegel services a number of industries including:
by Type of Contaminant, 1999-2009
($millions). Source BCC, Inc.
The amount of food imported into the United States has more than doubled to $50 billion in the last 20 years. Now, one of every 10 things we eat comes from another country. Some recent news:
- Mexican green onions killed three people in Pennsylvania.
- Raspberries from Guatemala gave thousands of people nationwide severe stomach pains.
- A Canadian cow sparked concern that U.S. hamburgers might ravage people's brains.
- Lead found in Mexican candy.
We take for granted that everything we eat has been checked and declared safe.
According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) an analysis of 3,500 food-poisoning outbreaks shows that contaminated produce is responsible for the greatest number of individual food-borne illnesses.
In November 2003, an outbreak of Hepatitis A was traced back to green onions imported from Mexico. The outbreak resulted in 555 illnesses and 3 deaths.
Although produce was responsible for the most individual cases of food-borne illness, seafood was responsible for the largest number of outbreaks. Fish can harbor naturally occurring toxins, such as scombrotoxin or ciguatoxin, while shellfish can play host to microbial hazards such as Vibrio bacteria or Noroviruses.
Poultry, beef, and eggs caused roughly the same number of outbreaks and illnesses.
From 1990 to 2003, CSPI found that:
- Seafood caused 720 outbreaks and 8,044 cases of illness.
- Produce caused 428 outbreaks and 23,857 illnesses.
- Poultry caused 355 outbreaks and 11,898 illnesses.
- Beef caused 338 outbreaks and 10,795 illnesses.
- Eggs caused 306 outbreaks and 10,449 illnesses.
- Multi-ingredient foods, where the contaminated ingredient was not identified, were linked to 591 outbreaks and 17,728 illnesses.
Candy & Cocoa
Imported Candy and Cocoa are likely to be targeted by the FDA for detention for controlled or restricted substances, such as Food Colors, Lead, Cyclamate, Pesticides or Aflatoxin. They are subject to detention for Light Filth and Macro Filth and there may also be a concern about certain pathogens such as Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes or Staphylococcus aureus. Read more ...
Juices
As a full service analytical testing laboratory we have the capability of testing juice and juice products for Adulteration, the addition of unlabeled adulterants, for pesticide residues and for nutritional composition. We can also test for microbiological contaminants such as the E. coli, or Salmonella spp. and spoilage organisms such as yeasts, molds and Alicyclobacillus. Read more ...
Poultry
Strasburger & Siegel is one of only a few independent laboratories accredited to perform testing on all four parameters for the USDA Russian Poultry Export Program. Services for the Poultry Industry include Pesticides, Heavy Metals including Arsenic, Pathogenic bacteria including Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes, and Antibiotics including Chloramphenicol, Bacitracin, Penicillin, and Sulfa Drugs. See the Fees list for more detail on Antibiotics Testing and Nutrition Analysis. Read more ...
Processed Meat
Many processed meat products and processed meat product facilities require microbiological testing for pathogens on a regular basis, including E. coli, E. coli 0157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Staph. aureus, and Salmonella spp. We are USDA accredited to perform testing for Moisture, Protein and Fat. Whether your need is for product testing, microbiological testing, Environmental swab testing, Equipment swab testing, Full Nutritional Analysis or Shelf-life testing you can rely on Strasburger & Siegel for your testing needs. Read more ...
Produce
In today’s challenging market place, it may be necessary to validate the microbiological quality and Pesticide Residues on fresh produce from time to time to support your HACCP plan and particularly when using a new supplier. Call on Strasburger and Siegel to help you develop an appropriate sampling plan and to test both the microbiology and the pesticide residues of your products. Read more ...Seafood
As well as the traditional microbiological testing of seafood products, seafood facility Environmental, Equipment, and Antibiotic testing, Strasburger & Siegel offers a full range of antibiotic testing including Chloramphenicol, Fluoroquinalones and Histamine testing. Read more ...Spices
We now test for Sudan Red! Shoe polish color in your Paprika?Strasburger & Siegel is one of only a few laboratories with the understanding of spices necessary to produce consistently accurate results. We are equipped to provide testing of Pesticides, Solvent Residues, Heavy Metals, Microbial testing and Foreign Materials. Our Aflatoxin HPLC method allows us to detect below one (1) ppb if required. Read more ...