Food safety experts report that the nation’s beef industry has done a remarkable job of dealing with carcass contamination involving E. coli. Incidences of E. coli O157 positives in ground beef sampling have dropped by more than 90 percent in the last decade, but the same decline hasn’t been seen in the incidence of Salmonella in ground beef.  more »

A professor of food safety and public health with Texas Tech’s Department of Animal and Food Sciences has been appointed to a national committee that will provide recommendations on microbial criteria of food. The selection of Guy Loneragan to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods was announced today (Mar. 1) by USDA officials.  more »

Attention, bread shoppers: A Texas Tech-based company could have the answer to some consumers’ unwelcome discovery that just-purchased loaves contain mold, reports the Associated Press today (Jan. 8). MicroZap Inc. claims its technology allows bread to stay mold-free for 60 days.  more »

Veterinary medicine has long been the focus of Guy Loneragan’s life. From the time he was old enough to stand on a stool; Loneragan helped his veterinarian father work with cattle. There, he learned valuable skills and gained insight into the practice of veterinary medicine. But it took time and traveling thousands of miles before he finally found his passion.  more »

BBC News reports today (Nov. 30) that a Texas Tech University-based company has developed a technique that it says can make bread stay mold-free for 60 days. The bread is zapped in a sophisticated microwave array which kills the spores that cause the problem. The company claims it could significantly reduce the amount of wasted bread.  more »

Last year, when Oregon Health Authority officials announced they would adopt the 2009 FDA Retail Food Code, restaurateurs suddenly faced a piece of legislation that would prohibit foodservice workers to touch prepared food with their bare hands. The gloves came off.  more »

Beef producers have become quite successful at detecting and preventing contamination of E. coli 0157:h7 in their raw beef products — that’s thanks to years of experience after the Shiga toxin-producing bacterial strain (STEC) was first declared as an adulterant in raw beef in 1994.  more »