Confined Spaces – Cal OSHA’s Special Emphasis Program

Article written by John McCullough, C.S.P., Wells Fargo Insurance Services USA, Inc., Sacramento, CA

The Division of Occupational Safety and Health, DOSH (Cal/OSHA), has initiated a Special Emphasis Program on Confined Spaces in all workplaces as there were seven confirmed confined space deaths in 2011.
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Food Central

Article written by François Korn, Managing Director, Seed Central

Food Central is a new initiative of the University of California, Davis aimed at energizing the food industry cluster in Northern California and beyond around the university’s world-class food science.
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2011-2012 Legislative Session Comes to an End

Friday, August 31, 2012 marked the end of the 2011-2012 Legislative Session. All bills had to be acted on by midnight before the final gavel went down.
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FDA Food Facility Registration under FSMA

The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), signed by President Obama in January 2011, is starting to take shape and CLFP staff is monitoring FDA updates and new requirements.
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CLFP Provides Tours for Lawrence Berkeley Lab Team Developing Benchmarks

In February, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) executed a contract with the Dutch consulting firm Ecofys Consultancy (Ecofys). Ecofys consults on renewable energy, energy and carbon efficiency, energy systems and markets and energy and climate policy. They were the company tasked with the development of benchmarks developed for the cap-and-trade market under the European Trading Scheme (ETS). Lawrence Berkeley Labs (LBL), per agreement with Ecofys, has been assigned the duties of developing a product-based benchmark for the food processing industry in California.
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CLFP and Food Processors Host AB 32 Community Outreach Meeting

As a follow up to the CLFP Capitol Day in June, Ingomar Packing Company and the Morning Star Packing Company joined with CLFP in hosting a community outreach meeting with local officials to advise them of developments concerning the state’s implementation of AB 32 and the cap-and-trade program, as well as their possible effects on processing companies operating in their communities. The meeting held August 9, hosted by both Ingomar and Morning Star at the Ingomar Packing plant in Gustine, was attended by the mayors of Los Banos and Gustine and a Merced County Supervisor. The mayors also extended invitations to the Merced Farm Bureau and the California Trucking Association.
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Dehydration is one of the oldest methods of food preservation, dating back to the early civilizations. Mediterranean fishing settlements dried fish in the open air and various dehydrated foods were found in ancient Egyptian tombs. Native American tribes preserved fruits, vegetables and meats. By 1795, the French developed the first dehydrator designed to regulate drying conditions and mechanize food saving. The French unit successfully dried fruit and vegetables at a controlled temperature with a continuous circulating flow of air.