Posted on 03/23/2008 11:36:40 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny
Americans finding soaring food prices hard to stomach can battle back by growing their own food. [Click image for a larger version] Dean Fosdick Dean Fosdick
Home vegetable gardens appear to be booming as a result of the twin movements to eat local and pinch pennies.
At the Southeastern Flower Show in Atlanta this winter, D. Landreth Seed Co. of New Freedom, Pa., sold three to four times more seed packets than last year, says Barb Melera, president. "This is the first time I've ever heard people say, 'I can grow this more cheaply than I can buy it in the supermarket.' That's a 180-degree turn from the norm."
Roger Doiron, a gardener and fresh-food advocate from Scarborough, Maine, said he turned $85 worth of seeds into more than six months of vegetables for his family of five.
A year later, he says, the family still had "several quarts of tomato sauce, bags of mixed vegetables and ice-cube trays of pesto in the freezer; 20 heads of garlic, a five-gallon crock of sauerkraut, more homegrown hot-pepper sauce than one family could comfortably eat in a year and three sorts of squash, which we make into soups, stews and bread."
[snipped]
She compares the current period of market uncertainty with that of the early- to mid-20th century when the concept of victory gardens became popular.
"A lot of companies during the world wars and the Great Depression era encouraged vegetable gardening as a way of addressing layoffs, reduced wages and such," she says. "Some companies, like U.S. Steel, made gardens available at the workplace. Railroads provided easements they'd rent to employees and others for gardening."
(Excerpt) Read more at dallasnews.com ...
Ingredients for Kaiser Semmeln
* 2 cups of boiled water
* 1 cake of compressed yeast
* 1 teaspoon
of salt
* ¼ cup of lukewarm water
* Between 6 and 7 cups of flour
* About 3/4 cup of flour
* White of 1 egg or less
[edit]
Instructions
1. Soften the yeast in the lukewarm water, mix thoroughly, then stir in the flour; knead into a ball of dough until it is smooth and elastic.
2. Make a deep cut across the dough in both directions.
3. Have the boiled water cooled to a lukewarm temperature. Into this, put the ball of dough.
4. It will sink to the bottom of the dish, but will gradually rise as it becomes light. In about fifteen minutes, it will float upon the water as it becomes a light, puffy sponge. Into this water and sponge, stir the salt and between six and seven cups of flour.
5. Knead or pound the dough about twenty minutes.
6. Let rise in a temperature of about 70 deg F., until the mass is doubled in bulk.
7. Divide into pieces weighing about three ounces each (there should be about fourteen pieces). Shape these into balls.
8. When all are shaped, use a sharp knife to make five separate pieces.
9. Set the balls into buttered tins, some distance apart and brush over the tops generously with melted butter.
10. Set to bake at once in around 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
11. When nearly baked, brush over with the beaten white of an egg and return to the oven to finish baking.
. http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Kaiser_Semmeln_Recipe
[LOL..granny]
Ingredients for Bran Cake Recipe
* 1 cup lukewarm milk
* 1 cake compressed yeast
* 1/2 pound sifted pastry flour (2 cups well shaken down)
* 1/2 cup of a vegetable shortening
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 cups bran (3 ounces)
* 1/2 cup raisins
* 1/2 cup dried currants
* 1/2 cup broken walnut meats
* 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
[edit]
Instructions
1. Dissolve the yeast cake in the warm milk, stir in the flour, and beat well.
2. Set this sponge in a warm place to rise.
3. Boil the raisins and currants in a little water until plump and drain.
4. Beat the shortening with a spoon until creamy.
5. Beat the sugar into the shortening and continue beating until the mixture is light and creamy. Add the egg and beat until stiff.
6. When the sponge is light, beat this mixture into it and beat in the salt and bran.
7. Beat the whole mixture together, then stir in the raisins, currants, and nuts.
8. Pour into an oiled bread tin and set in a warm place to rise about 1/2 inch.
9. Bake for about one hour in a warm oven.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Bran_Cake_Recipe
Ingredients for Arcadia Cakes Recipe
* Scald and dry a small mixing bowl, put in
* 3 tablespoons butter and rub until creamy. Add slowly
* 1/3 cup sugar; when smooth and light add
* 1 egg yolk and
* 3 tablespoons milk. Sift in
* 5/8 cup pastry flour and
* ¾ teaspoon baking powder. Mix well, then add
* 1 egg white beaten stiff. Bake in greased and floured muffin tins not more than 2 inches in diameter. The finished cakes should be not more than three-fourths of an inch thick. Remove soft centers from cakes, taking them out from the top; fill cakes with
* Cocoa Butter Cream, put cakes together in pairs with the filling inside, cover with
* White Butter Cream and cover entire cake with thin
[edit]
Instructions
1. Scald and dry a small mixing bowl.
2. Add 3 tablespoons butter and rub until creamy.
3. Add 1/3 cup sugar slowly.
4. When smooth and light, add 1 egg yolk and 3 tablespoons milk.
5. Sift in 5/8 cup pastry flour and ¾ teaspoon baking powder.
6. Mix well, then add 1 egg white beaten stiff.
7. Bake in greased and floured muffin tins not more than 2 inches in diameter. The finished cakes should be not more than three-fourths of an inch thick.
8. Remove soft centers from cakes, taking them out from the top.
9. Fill cakes with Cocoa Butter Cream.
10. Put cakes together in pairs with the filling inside.
11. Cover with White Butter Cream and cover entire cake with thin Coffee Frosting.
12. Decorate with reserved cream forced through a very small pastry tube of paper or tin.
13. The butter cream may be omitted and cakes be merely frosted on top if preferred.
[edit]
Butter Cream, Cocoa and White
1. Work 1/3 cup washed or fresh sweet butter until very light and creamy.
2. Add # 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar and1/2 teaspoon vanilla
very gradually.
3. Beat until very light.
4. Reserve 2 tablespoons mixture for decoration.
5. Divide remainder in two portions.
6. To one portion, add 1 tablespoon dry cocoa.
7. Whip 4 tablespoons cream and add two-thirds of it to the white butter cream.
8. Fold remainder into that which contains the cocoa.
9. Use as filling for cakes.
[edit]
Coffee Frosting
1. Mix 1/2 tablespoon corn syrup with 2 tablespoons strong hot coffee.
2. Add # 1 1/4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar a tablespoon at a time, beating constantly and occasionally setting over hot water to keep it lukewarm.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Arcadia_Cakes_Recipe
Ingredients for Scotch Oaten Cakes
* 2 cups oatmeal
* 1 cup flour
* ½ teaspoon salt
* 3 tablespoons butter
* ½ cup or more of cold water
[edit]
Instructions
1. Sift the flour, oatmeal and salt together, and chop the butter into it.
2. Mix with cold water into a stiff dough.
3. Knead and roll into very thin cakes.
4. Roll out into a round piece and cut the circle into quarters.
5. Bake in the toasting oven directly under, but not too near, the flame, for eight to ten minutes, until delicately browned on both sides.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Scotch_Oaten_Cakes_Recipe
Ingredients for Crumb Pan Cakes Recipe
* 1½ cups coarse bread crumbs
* 2 cups milk
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 2 eggs
* 1 cup flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* ¾ teaspoon salt
[edit]
Instructions
1. Cook the crumbs, milk and butter in double boiler for fifteen minutes, rub through a sieve.
2. When cool, add the beaten yolks of 2 eggs and the flour sifted with baking powder and salt.
3. Fold in the whites beaten very stiff.
4. Pour onto hot griddle and cook until golden brown on both sides, flipping once.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Crumb_Pan_Cakes_Recipe
. [A lot of bother to hide stale bread, why not make bread pudding? Could be a way to use dehydrated breads...granny]
Ingredients for One Egg Cake Recipe
* ¼ cup of butter
* ½ cup milk
* ½ cup sugar
* 1½ cups flour
* 1 egg
* 2½ teaspoons baking powder
[edit]
Instructions
1. Cream the butter, add sugar gradually, and egg well beaten.
2. Mix and sift flour and baking powder, add alternately with milk to first mixture.
3. Bake thirty minutes in a shallow pan.
4. Spread with Chocolate Frosting.
[Add Almond flavoring? LOL, I would..granny]
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/One_Egg_Cake_Recipe
Ingredients for Hurry Up Cake
* ¾ cup sugar
* 1½ cups flour
* 4 tablespoons vegetable shortening
* ½ teaspoon almond extract
* ½ teaspoon lemon extract
* 2 whites of eggs
* ¼ teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* Milk
[edit]
Instructions
1. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into bowl.
2. Put whites of eggs into measuring cup, add vegetable shortening, and fill cup with milk.
3. Add to dry mixture with extracts and beat vigorously six minutes.
4. Pour into small vegetable shorteninged and floured cake tin and bake in moderate oven forty-five minutes.
5. Cake may be frosted if liked.
6. Sufficient for one small cake.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Hurry_Up_Cake_Recipe
You are welcome to all the recipes that you can haul away.
LOL
Of course you are also welcome to post some of yours too.
We all change things and it interests me to see the changes.
Ingredients for Tomato Toast Recipe 1
* 1 quart of tomatoes
* Salt
* Pepper
* Dash of cayenne
* 1 tablespoon of sugar
* 2 tablespoons butter
* Nutmeg
* 4 slices of wheat bread
* Heavy cream, whipped
[edit]
Instructions
1. Stew tomatoes and season nicely with salt, pepper, a dash of cayenne, sugar, and butter.
2. A very little nutmeg or mace may be added if liked with a dash of onion juice.
3. Toast thin slices of entire wheat bread to an even, delicate brown; put them on a hot platter and moisten slightly with hot water and melted butter.
4. Cover the toast with the hot tomato. Just before serving, put 1 spoonful of thick, whipped cream on the top of each slice.
5. This is a nice breakfast or lunch dish to serve with a plain omelet and crisp slices of bacon.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Tomato_Toast_Recipe_1
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Recipes_for_Fruit_Cocktail_Bread
Recipes for fruit cocktail bread can help you create moist and flavorful bread that your whole family will love.
fruit cocktail bread
[edit]
Bring The Flavor
We all know that fresh bread has a great flavor. Once you have made plain bread a couple of times, you’ll be ready to move up to a more adventurous recipe. Most recipes for fruit cocktail bread use honey as a sweetener, which not only adds more depth to the flavor of the bread, but it makes the bread more healthful for you. You will also find that a lot of recipes for fruit cocktail bread make ample use of spices. When adding fruit cocktail to a bread recipe, you will want to add some cinnamon or nutmeg or anise. I even tried it with a little bit of cardamom. I liked it, but my test subjects were a bit iffy about it so I’m leaving it out of this recipe.
[edit]
What Kind of Nut are You?
Adding fruit cocktail to your bread recipe adds a lot of moisture to the loaf. This is not a bad thing, but it does leave you some room to add some crunch. Whatever nut you happen to like is the best one to go with. I have tried macadamia nuts and I tried pine nuts and I liked the pine nuts. If you like walnuts or pecans, you can definitely go with either of them. Just be sure to give them a rough chop before adding them to your dough. If you want to add another layer of complexity to the flavor of your bread, toast the nuts before adding them.
[edit]
It is Not a Fruitcake
There are many differences between fruitcake and fruit cocktail bread. The first and most obvious is that one is a cake and the other is a bread. Your fruit cocktail bread should be lighter than a fruitcake and, since you are using canned fruit cocktail, you will find the fruit is less chewy than the dried fruit bits found in fruitcake. I did find that my fruit cocktail bread was good as a side dish for tea and I liked it very much with hibiscus tea.
[edit]
Recipes For Fruit Cocktail Bread
The liquid that the fruit cocktail comes packed in is sweetened and is a great medium to bloom your yeast. If you like, you can add your honey to this liquid before you add the yeast and bloom it that way, or you can hold the honey back and add it directly to your dough, either way will work.
[edit]
Ingredients
You will need:
* 1 package of active dry yeast
* 1 can fruit cocktail (about 14 –15 ounces)
* 3 1/4 cups bread flour
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
* 1 tablespoon honey
* 2 tablespoons melted butter
* 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
* 1/4 teaspoon ginger
* 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
[edit]
Instructions
1. Using the liquid from the fruit cocktail (so you don’t have to use a sugar and water mixture and you can get more fruit cocktail flavor into your bread), dissolve the yeast in the liquid.
2. As the yeast blooms, mix the salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger with the bread flour.
3. Slowly add the yeast water to the flour.
4. Add in the honey, pine nuts, and butter to the dough and knead together.
5. Add the fruit cocktail and knead the dough gently until the fruit is thoroughly incorporated.
6. Spray a large bowl with non-stick spray and place the dough in the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm draft free place until it has doubled in size.
7. Punch the dough down and then either form into loaves or place in two loaf pans that have been sprayed with non-stick spray.
8. Let the dough rise again.
9. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about a half hour or until done.
10. Let cool.
11. Serve with butter and honey.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Recipe_for_Old_Style_Bread
You can make bread
at home as long as you have an oven and a recipe for old style bread.
old style bread
[edit]
Basic Bread
Fresh bread makes every meal better. The smell of fresh bread baking fills your kitchen with a comforting aroma and a seductive warmth. Making your own bread from scratch is easer than you think since you can make bread without any special equipment, but a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment would be a great help.
Most bakeries use a proofing cabinet to properly proof their dough. You may not have a proofing cabinet, but your oven can work as a reasonable alternative. The good news is that with just one recipe for old style bread, you can make some delicious loaves of bread with no more than a sheet pan and a sheet of parchment paper. A bread stone is helpful, but I have made baguettes at school without them. If you have a bread pan, that would be nice, but I make boules and other round loaves without one.
[edit]
What You Will Need
In order to make a decent loaf of bread from any recipe for old style bread, you will need a large bowl, a whisk, a sheet pan or cookie sheet, parchment paper, and, if you have it, some non-stick spray. A pastry brush would be useful, also.
You will need to find some bread flour. Bread flour is different from all-purpose flour in that it has more gluten strength and a high protein content. Bread flour will produce a better texture and is the best flour to use when making bread, hence its name. It is entirely possible to make bread with regular good old fashion all-purpose flour, but the resulting bread just won’t be as good as if you had used bread flour.
[edit]
What You Will Have to Do
If your oven has a “warm” setting, preheat your oven using the warm setting. If your oven does not have a warm setting and is a gas stove, leave it off. The pilot light will keep your oven at about 100 degrees. You need to do this because you will need to proof your bread.
[edit]
Recipe for Old Style Bread
I like to use 1 ounce of compressed yeast. If you don’t have compressed yeast, you can substitute one tablespoon plus one teaspoon of dry yeast.
This recipe for old style bread is a basic recipe for French bread.
You will need:
* 16 ounces water (luke warm)
* 1 ounce compressed yeast
* 1/2 ounce sugar
* 1/2 ounce salt
* 2 pounds bread flour
[edit]
Instructions
1. Place the yeast and 1/4 of the water into a bowl and mix thoroughly.
2. Add the rest of the water and the sugar.
3. Add half the flour slowly as you mix the contents of the bowl with a bench scraper.
4. Add the salt and the rest of the flour.
5. The dough should be able to be turned out of the bowl at this point.
6. Flour your workbench (or your counter or the cutting board or whatever work surface you are using).
7. Knead the dough until smooth.
8. It should be as soft as a baby’s tushie.
9. Put the dough into an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
10. Put the bowl in a warm place that is draft free. In your stove (if the stove is turned off) or refrigerator is a good place.
11. When the dough has doubled in size, punch the dough down by pushing your fist into the dough. It should deflate.
12. Proof the dough again.
13. Punch down again and then separate the dough into three 13-ounce loaves.
14. Shape into long baguette shaped loaves.
15. Place the loaves on a sheet pan or cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. Spray the paper with non-stick spray.
16. Let the loaves proof until doubled in size.
17. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
18. Wash the loaves with egg wash.
19. Slash the loaves with a sharp knife.
20. Place a sheet tray with ice cubes in the bottom of the oven.
21. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until golden brown.
22. Let the bread cool before cutting.
[edit]
Notes And Hints
If you are using dry yeast, let the yeast bloom by mixing the sugar with the water and add the dry yeast. Then follow the rest of the directions.
A bench scraper is a large plastic scraper that you can get at most cooking supply stores or arts and crafts store. They usually cost about seventy-five cents.
Some bakers skip the second proof and go directly to the weighing out of the loaves. I have tried both ways and I like the crust I get with a second proofing. It’s up to you. .
Ingredients for Bread Custard Pudding Recipe 1
* 1-½ cups stale bread
cut into squares
* 2 cups milk
* 1 large egg
* ¼ cup sugar
* 1/3 cup seedless raisins
* Vanilla flavor
[edit]
Instructions
1. Spread the bread scantily with butter, cut into small diced pieces, and put into a baking pan.
2. Beat the egg and the sugar together slightly.
3. Add a little vanilla and the milk to the egg mixture.
4. Mix well and pour over the bread. Let stand for half an hour.
5. Sprinkle the raisins over the top and work them into the mixture.
6. Bake at 350 degrees until set and a light brown, about 45 minutes.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Bread_Custard_Pudding_Recipe_1
[Add nutmeg or cinnamon?]
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Omm_Ali:_Egyptian_Bread_Pudding
Made with phyllo pastry rather than chunks of stale bread, Omm Ali: Egyptian bread pudding is a delicious dessert option.
bread pudding
[edit]
Think of a Different Bread Pudding
Every other bread pudding recipe is made with little cubes of stale bread. Sometimes it is sourdough, sometimes croissants, sometimes raisin bread, but nevertheless it’s basically the same hard bread squares. Let’s try something different here. Let’s try making some Omm Ali: Egyptian bread pudding.
What makes this bread pudding different is that it uses phyllo pastry. Phyllo pastry is sometimes difficult to work with. If you are trying to make Baklava or almond fingers or apricot parcels and you let the phyllo sheets get dry, working with them will be like trying to piece together the Dead Sea scrolls. But this flaky, tasty pastry that can lead you to madness can, in this case, lead you to a unique version of bread pudding.
[edit]
Ingredients
To make Omm Ali: Egyptian bread pudding, you are going to need:
* 12 sheets phyllo pastry
* 2 1/2 cups milk
* 1 cup cream
* 1 beaten egg
* 2 tablespoons rose water (optional)
* 1/2 cup chopped pistachios
* 1/2 cup chopped almonds
* 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
* 2/3 cup raisins
* 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
* Crème Anglaise
[edit]
Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Using two baking sheets, bake the phyllo pastry for 15 minutes.
3. Remove the phyllo from the oven and turn the oven up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. Scald the milk and cream by bringing them to a simmer.
5. Temper in the beaten egg and add the rose water.
6. Cook over low heat until it thickens to nappé stage.
7. Crumble the phyllo pastry.
8. Layer the phyllo, nuts, and raisins in a casserole dish ending with a layer of phyllo.
9. Pour the custard mixture over the contents of the casserole.
10. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.
11. Dust the top with the cinnamon.
12. Serve with the Crème Anglaise.
[edit]
Omm Ali: Egyptian Bread Pudding
If this is your first time using phyllo, then this really is a good place to start. Phyllo has a tendency to dry quickly and then crumble when you touch it. This recipe will give you some experience working with the delicate pastry without having to worry about keeping it perfect. I think that once you taste your Omm Ali: Egyptian bread pudding you will make it your go to bread pudding.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Pineapple_And_Bread_Pudding_Recipe
Ingredients for Pineapple And Bread Pudding Recipe
* 2 cups milk, scalded
* 4 slices bread, cut in squares
* ½ cup sugar
* 3 slices pineapple, chopped not too fine
* 3 eggs, beaten
[edit]
Instructions
1. Mix together the sugar and eggs.
2. Gradually add the scalded milk.
3. Put bread and chopped pineapple in a pudding dish.
4. Pour the milk mixture on top.
5. Set pudding dish in a pan of water.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Mock_Indian_Pudding_Recipe
Ingredients for Mock Indian Pudding Recipe
* ½ small loaf baker’s entire-wheat bread
* 3½ cups milk
* ½ cup molasses
* Butter
[edit]
Instructions
1. Remove crusts from bread and cut into five slices of uniform thickness.
2. Spread generously with butter and arrange in baking-dish.
3. On top, pour three cups of milk and molasses.
4. Bake from two to three hours at 300 degrees, stirring three times during the first hour of baking, then add remaining milk and finish baking.
5. Serve with cream or vanilla ice cream.
[edit]
Ingredients for Bread And Onion Pudding Recipe
* ¼ pound bread crumbs
* 1 teaspoon sage
* ½ pound onions
* ½ pint milk
* 1 ounce butter
* Pepper and salt
[edit]
Instructions
1. Put the bread crumbs in a bowl.
2. Boil the milk and pour it over the bread crumbs. Cover with a plate and let them stand for an hour.
3. Slice the onions and throw them into cold water. Let them come to a boil as quickly as possible and continue boiling for three minutes. Drain.
4. Chop the onions roughly and add them to the milk and bread crumbs.
5. Rub the sage between the fingers and put it through a sieve to remove the stalks. Add to it a seasoning of pepper and add the sage to the other ingredients.
6. Melt the butter and mix it carefully into the pudding.
7. Bake the pudding for an hour at 350 degrees.
http://recipes.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Bread_And_Onion_Pudding_Recipe
USGS and The Great Southern California ShakeOut!
Compilation of materials from “the most comprehensive analysis ever of what a major Southern California earthquake would mean ... [which was] used as the basis for The Great Southern California Shakeout, November 12-18, 2008, which [included] the largest earthquake preparedness drill in United States history.” Includes video and transcripts from scientists and project partners, news releases, podcasts, videos narrated at the San Andreas Fault, photos, and links to reports. From the U.S. Geological Survey.
URL: http://www.usgs.gov/homepage/science_features/shakeout.asp
LII Item: http://lii.org/cs/lii/view/item/27230
Mornin’ Granny!
You were up late last night, I hope you are feeling well today. I’m still working on the file with the first half of the posts. I’ll be at dialysis tomorrow about 3:00, but no telling if there will be an Internet connection.
I just wanted to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and give you a big {{{hug}}}.
I’m going over to my aunt’s house in a little while, so I won’t be on here much today. I’ll link up with you tomorrow. We are going to start moving up to the house soon so I’ll be off and on over the next few days. I can’t wait! It’s starting to rain which will make the foothills beautiful green with millions of wildflowers in March/April. And we’ll have the Blossom Trail soon too, all of the peach, plum, orange, lemon, almond and nectarine trees will be in bloom. Lovely.
Talk to you soon and take care of yourself. Love, Vicki.
MELAMINE - USA (02): TRACES IN INFANT FORMULA
*********************************************
A ProMED-mail post
http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
http://www.isid.org
Date: Wed 26 Nov 2008
Source: Yahoo News, Associated Press (AP) report [edited]
http://news.yahoo.com:80/s/ap/20081126/ap_on_he_me/infant_formula
FDA finds traces of melamine in US infant formula
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said last month [October 2008]
it was unable to identify any melamine exposure level as safe for
infants, but a top official said it would be a “dangerous
overreaction” for parents to stop feeding infant formula to babies
who depend on it.
“The levels that we are detecting are extremely low,” said Dr Stephen
Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied
Nutrition. “They should not be changing the diet. If they’ve been
feeding a particular product, they should continue to feed that
product. That’s in the best interest of the baby.”
[large amounts of this article snipped...granny]
Previously undisclosed tests, obtained by The Associated Press under
the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), show that the FDA has detected
melamine in a sample of one popular formula and the presence of
cyanuric acid, a chemical relative of melamine, in the formula of a
2nd manufacturer.
Separately, a 3rd major formula maker told AP that in-house tests had
detected trace levels of melamine in its infant formula.
The 3 firms — Abbott Laboratories, Nestle, and Mead Johnson —
manufacture more than 90 percent of all infant formula produced in
the United States.
[ large amount of info snipped]
Still, the announcement was widely interpreted by manufacturers, the
news media, and Congress to mean that infant formula that tested
positive at any level could not be sold in the United States.
It was not until the AP inquired about tests on domestic formula that
the FDA articulated that while it couldn’t set a safe exposure for
infants, it would accept some melamine in formula — raising the
question of whether the decision to accept very low concentrations
was made only after traces were detected.
[snipped]
According to the FDA, data for tests of 77 infant formula samples
showed a trace concentration of melamine in one product — Nestle’s
Good Start Supreme Infant Formula with Iron. The FDA had 2 positive
tests on one sample, with readings of 0.137 and 0.14 parts per
million, FDA spokeswoman Judy Leon said Wednesday [26 Nov 2008].
An FDA spreadsheet the AP received Monday [24 Nov 2008] under its
FOIA request attributed those results to Mead Johnson’s Infant
Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with Iron. On Wednesday [26 Nov 2008],
Leon said the FDA’s spreadsheet contained an error — that the
information provided to the AP had incorrectly switched the names of
the Mead Johnson product with the Nestle product.
Leon said Wednesday [26 Nov 2008] that a corrected spreadsheet shows
that it was Mead Johnson’s Infant Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with
Iron in which FDA detected an average of 0.247 parts per million of
cyanuric acid, a melamine byproduct.
[snipped]
The FDA tests also detected melamine in 2 samples of nutritional
supplements for very sick children who have trouble digesting regular
food. Nestle’s Peptamen Junior medical food showed 0.201 and 0.206
parts per million of melamine while Nestle’s Nutren Junior-Fiber
showed 0.16 and 0.184 parts per million.
The agency said that while there are no established exposure levels
for infant formula, pediatric medical food — often used in feeding
tubes for very sick, young children — can have 2.5 parts per million
of melamine, just like food products other than infant formula.
snipped]
[Byline: Martha Mendoza, Justin Pritchard]
—
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail Rapporteur Brent Barrett
[Following the pet food incident in 2007 (see [5] in ProMED-mail
archive no. 20080919.2951), several authorities have performed
preliminary risk assessments.
The US FDA has published an interim safety/risk assessment on
melamine and structural analogues and has established for melamine a
tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 0.63 mg per kg of body weight per day
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/%7Edms/melamra.html
The European Food Safety Authority has published a provisional
statement and recommends a TDI of 0.5 mg per kg of body weight per
day as the tolerable intake value for melamine.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published “Melamine and
Cyanuric acid: Toxicity, Preliminary Risk Assessment and Guidance on
Levels in Food”
http://www.who.int/foodsafety/fs_management/Melamine.pdf
This preliminary guidance was developed to assist national authorities
in the decision-making process on possible health concerns of melamine
levels in food. It is proposed by WHO as a 1st pragmatic approach
until more data become available, which would allow a more detailed
assessment.
For more information
- Questions and answers on melamine
http://www.who.int/entity/csr/media/faq/QAmelamine/en/index.html
- Melamine-contamination event, China, September 2008
http://www.who.int/entity/foodsafety/fs_management/infosan_events/en/index.html
- WHO page on breastfeeding
http://www.who.int/topics/breastfeeding/en/index.html
- Guidelines for the safe preparation, storage, and handling of
powdered infant formula
http://www.who.int/entity/foodsafety/publications/micro/pif2007/en/index.html
Mod.AS]
[Re: “there have been no reports of human illness in the United States
from melamine”, this is not surprising since I doubt that any kidney
stones removed from patients in the USA have been analyzed for
melamine content.
The human experiment has already been done unintentionally. As
mentioned in the above report, melamine-containing packaging and
cleaning solutions have been used in food processing for many years,
so there has been human exposure of the population to trace amounts of
melamine for years. Perhaps somebody should start testing autopsy
specimens from selected deaths in the older age groups for melamine
content? - Mod.JW]
[see also:
Melamine contaminated food products (08): worldwide ex China 20081120.3658
Melamine - USA: alert 20081116.3619
Melamine contamination, animal feed (04): China 20081114.3598
Melamine contaminated food products (07): worldwide ex China 20081114.3587
Melamine contaminated food products (06): worldwide ex China 20081105.3480
Melamine contamination, animal feed (03): China 20081031.3433
Melamine contaminated food products (05): worldwide ex China 20081030.3425
Melamine contaminated food products (04): Worldwide ex China 20081027.3391
Melamine contamination, animal feed (02): China 20081020.3326
Melamine contaminated food products (03): Worldwide ex China 20081020.3324
Melamine contaminated food products (02): Worldwide ex China 20081004.3129
Melamine contaminated food products - Worldwide ex China 20081002.3107
Melamine contamination, animal feed: RFI 20081001.3097
Infant kidney stones - China (04): WHO, international recall 20080919.2951
Infant kidney stones - China (03): melamine 20080917.2915
Infant kidney stones - China (02): Gansu, milk, melamine 20080912.2856
2007
Vickie, a special Thanksgiving wish for you and yours, this will be a day for your memories file.
Thank you for all the work you have done on the thread and don’t worry, we are so far ahead of our readers, that we can take a day or two off and no one will know it.
Will be thinking of you tomorrow, too.
How lucky you will be, in making the move to your lovely home, I am so glad to you.
LOL, 3 days of your rain, means that I will have lots of goats head and foxtail stickers next spring.
This rain, makes the air as hard to breathe, as washing my hair does.
Hugs and much love,
granny
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