As you might remember, back in October 2008, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) submitted a citizen petition to the FDA asking them to prohibit the use of BPA in human food and packaging. Now, we must begrudgingly be the bearers of bad news – the FDA denied the request and is going to allow food manufacturers to keep on packaging food in materials containing BPA.  Hit the jump to read why the FDA decided against the petition and let us know what you think.

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Post tags: BPA, BPA ban, BPA in food packaging, fda, FDA ban on BPA, food packaging ban on BPA, nrdc

Since the 1970s, the Food and Drug Administration has known that widespread use of large quantities of antibiotics on healthy livestock contributes to the ongoing health problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Despite that knowledge, the FDA has done little to curb the use of penicillin and tetracyclines in livestock feed, which puts people at risk. But this week, in a major victory for food safety advocates, a US Magistrate Judge, acting on a lawsuit brought against the FDA by NRDC and partners, ordered the FDA to initiate proceedings to withdraw approval for antibiotic use in animal feed, unless drug manufacturers prove in a hearing that said antibiotic use is safe for humans.

Photo © Flickr user Joost J. Bakker

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Post tags: antibiotic resistant bacteria, antibiotics, cows, farming, fda, Food and Drug Administration, food safety, livestock, Natural Resources Defense Council, nrdc, organic cows, penicillin, public health, super bugs, super germs, sustainable food, tetracyclines

It recently came to light that Monsanto’s former public policy vice president, Michael Taylor, is now the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) deputy commissioner for food safety, raising concerns about Taylor’s ability to justly regulate his former employer. Food safety activists have rushed the internet with displeasure about the posting and have gathered 420,000 signatures on a petition to have Taylor fired from his lofty federal job. Now it seems the FDA is not willing to be pushed over, saying Taylor excuses himself from decisions that could be wrongly construed, was not a Monsanto lobbyist as the petition states, and does not give Monsanto — the agricultural giant accused of monopolizing the seed industry and relentlessly spreading their genetically modified crops through legal loopholes — a pass in any way. The food advocacy world won’t be swayed and says they won’t relent until the FDA ends their ties with “corporate interests”.

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Post tags: corporate ties, fda, fda corporate ties, Food and Drug Administration, genetically modified foods, Monsanto, monsanto fda, monsanto genetically modified foods, monsanto gmo, monsanto government ties, monsanto seeds

Read the rest of FDA Unveils “Scary” New Anti-Smoking Packaging for Cigarettes

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Post tags: anti smoking ads, anti smoking campaign, anti smoking cigarette labels, cigarette warning labels, dangers of smoking, Design for Health, fda, fda anti smoking campaign, Food and Drug Administration, graphic cigarette ads, graphic cigarette labels, health related smoking problems, new cigarette packaging, new fda cigarette labels

People who suffer from a form of brain cancer called GBM (glioblastoma multiforme) that resists chemotherapy and radiation will soon be able to undergo a less intrusive electrical treatment at home. Recently approved by the FDA, the Novo TTF-100A comprises a cap of electrodes attached to a machine that delivers a low-level electric current directly to the patient’s scalp. Known as Tumor Treatment Fields (TTF), the electricity disrupts the tumor cells‘ shape and electrical configuration such that their rapid growth is either stopped, or even reversed.

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Post tags: cancer treatment, eco design, electrical cancer treatment, fda, GBM, glioblastoma multiforme, green design, green health, NovoTTF-100A, sustainable design

This story might sound like an April Fool’s joke, but we assure you, it’s totally real. Canadian researchers have developed Enviropig, a line of genetically engineered Yorkshire pigs that can digest phosphorous more efficiently than traditional Yorkshires. Scientists hope the Franken-pigs will prevent phosphorous from running into waterways and decrease the incidence of dead zones. While the idea of modifying pigs to be more earth-friendly is certainly interesting, we have to ask – wouldn’t it make the most sense environmentally to simply stop eating or at least cut back on consuming so many animal products? Instead of messing with nature, we could drastically cut the impact of all of the pigs and cows we eat if we just changed our diets a bit.

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Post tags: agricultural run-off and dead zones, dead zones, Environment Canada, Enviropig, fda, genetically engineered pigs, pigs and phosphorous, pigs prevent dead zones, University of Guelph, Yorkshire pigs

How many times have you bit into a piece of fruit only to find that you’re also chomping on a sticker label? The small yet wasteful labels have long been the bane of waste-conscious fruit and vegetable eaters, but that might all change thanks to new technology that uses a low-energy carbon dioxide laser beam to etch information directly onto produce. No more peeling those annoying labels!

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Post tags: fda, grapefruit, laser etching, sticker labels, usda