Residual and potentially dangerous chemicals in food and drinking water have been in the news lately (see this month’s Manufacturing News for an update on PFAS) as one such report found that 80% of urine samples drawn from children and adults in the U.S. contained glyphosate. FOOD ENGINEERING has also had its share of news on heavy metals in food and baby food. Why are we seeing so much contamination?
Much of the microbiological and quality testing done by the food industry is conducted to meet customer demands. This is especially true with products that are deemed high risk. Examples of such products are meat, dairy, and almost any product containing protein, plus any product that does not incorporate a kill step in the process.