Dutch researchers develop pork chop from stem cells

Melbourne: Dutch scientists have succeeded in growing a pork chop in the lab from stem cells.

The faux chop is made of 2cm long meat strips and is believed to have the texture of a scallop.

According to the Sun, researchers say this could be an eco-friendly alternative to farming livestock.

"If we took stem cells from one pig and multiplied it by a million, we'd need a million fewer pigs to get the same amount of meat," News.com.au quoted Mark Post of Maastricht University in the Netherlands, as saying.

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World's 'most expensive' ham leg on sale in London

The Iberico ham comes with its own DNA certificate

"The world's most expensive ham" has gone on sale in London, according to retailer Selfridges.

The leg of Iberico ham, which costs £1,800, went on sale at the food hall in the retailer's flagship store in Oxford Street, central London.

The 7kg (15lb) ham leg comes with its own DNA certificate as proof of authenticity.

Pig farmer and ham expert Manuel Maldonado selected 50 pigs that were reared in Extremadura in western Spain.

The pigs were fed on a diet of acorns and roots to give the ham a distinctive flavour.

'Gourmet luxury'

After being slaughtered their ham was salted and cured for three years, before going on sale in a hand-made wooden box wrapped in an apron made by a Spanish tailor.

"Connoisseurs will appreciate the melt-in-the-mouth texture of this truly amazing Spanish ham," said Selfridges fresh food Buyer Andrew Cavanna.

"The leg may seem to have a large price tag but when you think about the amount of care taken from breeding right through to the curing, it is actually amazing value.

"Every single gram will be savoured as one of life's incredible gourmet luxuries."

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Singapore snorts over McDonald's toy pig blunder

SINGAPORE (Reuters Life!) - McDonald's apologized to Singapore Friday and brought a pig back to its toy menu, after a decision to leave the animal out of its Chinese zodiac collection upset many in the predominantly ethnic Chinese nation.

LIFESTYLE

McDonald's this month started selling cartoon character miniatures depicting the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac calendar, but the pig was replaced by love god Cupid as McDonald's said it did not want to offend Muslims.

But the move, just ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday and Valentine's Day in February, backfired as many Chinese customers complained in chatrooms and blogs that they would not have a chance to buy the animal sign of their birth year.

"We're sorry, and we're grateful," the fast food chain said in a half-page advertisement in the Straits Times newspaper, saying it never intended to offend anyone.

Multi-racial Singapore has successfully avoided racial tension since deadly riots in the 1960s, though the government sees race as the biggest potential fault line in society.

"I understand that we need to respect our Muslim citizens as Singapore is a multiracial and multicultural society," Pauline Koh, whose daughter was born in the Year of Pig, wrote to the Straits Times.

"However, in this case, the Pig is one of the Chinese zodiac signs -- part of Chinese culture and customs -- and it is just a soft toy, not food," she wrote. Around 75 percent of the nearly 5 million population in Singapore is ethnically Chinese and 15 percent is Malay or Indian Muslim. McDonald's and many other fastfood chains sell food that is halal, or acceptable to Muslims.

Pork and other pig products are not halal food.

(Reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan and Fabian Ng; Editing by Miral Fahmy)

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Pig abuse on the rise

MONDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 2009 09:25 DN NEWS

Increasing number of pigs arrive at slaughter houses with serious injuries from being hit with chains and planks

A new system which rewards the speed of loading pigs on to transport vehicles could be behind the rising number of pigs being delivered with injuries to slaughter.

In the last two years, the number of cases involving pig abuse has quintupled.

The country’s largest slaughterhouse, Danish Crown in Horsens, and the Department of Veterinary Disease Biology at the University of Copenhagen, have noted the tendency, where in some cases more than 30 pigs have arrived at slaughterhouses with serious injuries.

Professor Henrik Elvang Jensen at the University of Copenhagen said studies of the pigs’ injuries showed that most of them were occurring on the farms. The injuries were caused by blunt instruments such as pipes, planks and chains, he said.

An explanation for this may lie with the introduction of a new system in 2006 that rewards farmers for transporting the pigs more quickly.

‘When a system is like that it can provoke a violent reaction if the farmer suddenly sees 30 pigs running in the wrong direction,’ Elvang Jensen said.

Erik Bredholt, who is in charge of Danish Crown’s pork production committee, said beating animals was completely unacceptable.

‘Every farmer knows you don’t get your pigs loaded on to the truck faster by beating them,’ he said.

Bredholt argued that the increase in the number of injured pigs had nothing to do with the new system, pointing instead to the economic pressure many farmers were presently under.

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PORK 101 Dates Set for 2010

By Pork news source | Monday, November 30, 2009

PORK 101 has announced its 2010 schedule. A three-day, hands-on experience designed to update participants on quality and consistency issues in the pork industry, PORK 101 is hosted by the American Meat Science Association in cooperation with the National Pork Board.

PORK 101 is scheduled for March 9-11 at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa; April 13-15 at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb.; May 25-27 at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas; and on a yet-to-be-announced date at Oklahoma State University.

At PORK 101, participants evaluate eight live hogs that are processed during class, with attendees learning about grading, food safety and product processing. The class will make and sample processed product from the hogs including pumped loins, bacon, hams and sausage.

For more information and to register.

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Dutch Scientists Grow First Pork Meat In Lab

By Paul Adams

Posted 11.30.2009 at 1:59 pm

Bioreactor for Cell Cultures M. Janicki

A Dutch project that launched in 2005 has finally borne fruit: cells from a delicious pig have been cultured in the laboratory to grow the first successful filet of in vitro pork, The Times reports.

The prospect of vat-grown meat has been the stuff of science fiction for quite a while, and the subject of serious study for over a decade. A number of groups, including odd bedfellows NASA and PETA, see it as the answer to feeding a hungry world, without all the unpleasant externalities of large-scale meat production. And many vegetarians say they would not have an ethical dilemma eating meat if no animal was killed to produce it.

The team at Holland's Eindhoven University extracted muscle cells from a living pig and incubated them in an appetizing nutrient broth "derived from the blood products of animal foetuses," according to The Times. Future lab meat will be grown in a synthetic medium instead.

An actual lab-grown pork chop is still a ways away, though. Meat suitable for the plate has to be more than a simple petri-dish-grown wad of muscle tissue. Without blood flow, bones, connective tissue, and a modest amount of exercise, the flavor and texture of the muscle will be far from palatable. The culture achieved by the Dutch scientists is reportedly a "soggy form of pork" that its creators have not yet ventured to taste.

For now, though, before the technology for a beautiful synthetic steak has been perfected, lab-grown meat may still be suitable for feeding to other animals, where its impact on environmental and economic issues would still be beneficial. At present, for instance, 25 percent of the world's fish catch is fed back to farmed fish each year, a ratio that's hugely detrimental to the sustainability of the seafood industry.

The lab-grown meat might be edible as a component of sausage as well; and indeed one of the primary funding sources of the Dutch study is Stegeman, a sausage manufacturer owned by Sara Lee.

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Pig muck to be turned into power

A Scottish farm has secured a grant to harness the power of pig muck by turning it into electricity.

The company in East Lothian was given more than £500,000 to convert slurry and vegetable waste into energy.

The Ruchlaw Produce Company in Dunbar, which employs 45 people, is the first farm in south east Scotland to use the technology.

The waste is fed into an "anaerobic digester" to create methane and carbon dioxide.

This will then be pumped into a biogas plant to generate electricity and hot water for heating.

The digester should be able to produce 832MW of electricity and 629MWH of heat.

It will be formally unveiled by Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead this week.

Excess fuel

He said: "Agriculture is well placed to help Scotland reduce harmful emissions and at the same time reap the benefits for farming businesses.

"Scotland has some of the most ambitious climate change legislation in the world and there has already been a great deal of innovation within the farming sector.

"Land use is estimated to contribute around 20% of Scotland's total emissions and the actions outlined in our plan will help agriculture thrive and create a healthier climate. A win-win solution for us all."

It is hoped about 2,000 tonnes of vegetable waste will be gathered by local councils and producers to be converted into "green" energy, reducing landfill waste.

Any extra waste generated from the new plant will be converted into fertiliser and excess fuel will be sold to the National Grid.

The company, set on 137 hectares, has 3,200 breeding sows which produce 70,000 pigs a year.

The £560,000 grant was secured from Rural Priorities, part of the Scotland Rural Development Programme.

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FACTBOX-Flu triggers pig and pork import bans worldwide

May 4 (Reuters) - Twenty countries have banned imports of pigs, pork and other meat in response to the H1N1 flu strain that has infected both people and swine, according to the World Health Organisation.

Following is a list of the bans, as well as the measures taken by countries that have not blocked imports in response to the outbreak, which health and trade officials say is not food-borne and does not pose a danger to meat consumers:



RUSSIA

-- Pork banned from Guatemala, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador.

-- All meat and meat products banned from Mexico and the U.S. states of California, Texas, and Kansas.

CHINA

-- Live pigs and pork products banned from Mexico and the U.S. states of California, Texas and Kansas.

SERBIA 

-- Pigs and pork banned from Mexico and the United States.

THAILAND

-- Live pigs banned from Mexico and the United States.

JORDAN 

-- All meat banned from countries with confirmed H1N1 cases.

PHILIPPINES

-- Pigs and pork products banned from Mexico and the United States.

UKRAINE

-- Pork banned from Mexico and the U.S. states of California, Texas and Kansas. 

INDONESIA

-- Pork banned. No details given, unclear if only from Mexico and the United States or from around the world.

LEBANON

-- Pigs and pork banned from affected countries. Measure orders destruction of cargo en route from affected countries, the closure of domestic pig farms, the prohibition of pig slaughter and the blood testing for all pigs.

AZERBAIJAN

-- Livestock products banned from North America.

BAHRAIN

-- Pork products banned from Mexico, the United States and any country with reported H1N1 cases.

CROATIA

-- Pork banned from North America, plus any country with confirmed cases.

ECUADOR

-- Pork banned from Mexico and the United States.

KAZAKHSTAN

-- Pork banned from Mexico and the United States.

MACEDONIA

-- Pork banned from North America and countries with confirmed cases.

MONTENEGRO 

-- Pork banned from North America and countries with confirmed cases.

SURINAM

-- Animals, raw pork and semen imports banned (no further details given)

SWITZERLAND

-- Pork from Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and United States

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

-- Pork banned for both import and sale (no details given)

BELARUS

-- Meat banned from seven countries (not specified)

-- Cattle, poultry and feed banned from Canada, Mexico, the United States, New Zealand, Spain, France, and Israel.

SOUTH KOREA

-- No ban imposed. Increased number of flu virus checks on pork products from Mexico and the United States.

EUROPEAN UNION

-- No ban imposed and no change to import policy, given "flu has nothing to do with food chain".

JAPAN

-- No ban imposed. Checks of live pig imports for infection. No checks on imported pork "as no risk when cooked".

KOSOVO

-- No ban imposed. Increased import monitoring (no details). (For related story, please see: [L4584168]) (For more Reuters swine flu coverage, please click here:here )

© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved

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Pork Safe To Eat, Pig Farmers Say

Monday, 27 April, 2009 - 20:13

Wellington, April 27 NZPA - Consumers should not be put off eating pork because swine flu is not spread through food, the pork industry said today.

Pork New Zealand said that though the H1N1 influenza A virus, called swine flu, may have originated in pigs, it was a human health risk because it was being transmitted from human to human.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) had confirmed that it was safe to eat all pork products, the industry said in a statement.

"Swine influenza has not been shown to be transmissible to people through eating properly handled and prepared pork," the WHO said.

"Swine influenza virus is killed by cooking temperatures of 70degC."

Though New Zealand has never recorded a case of swine flu in farmed pigs, the pork industry said today it was reminding farmers to be vigilant around disinfecting and cleaning, visitor access to farms and to "ensure staff do not work with pigs if they have flu-like symptoms".

Any unusual pig health issues should be discussed with a veterinarian, a spokesman for Pork NZ said.

Symptoms of swine flu in pigs included sudden onset of fever, depression, coughing discharge from the nose or eyes, sneezing, breathing difficulties, eye redness or inflammation, and loss of appetite.

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Blue-ear pig disease now under control

Blue-ear pig disease has been brought under control thanks to the introduction of a series of tough measures to combat diseases in cattle and poultry on a nationwide scale, according to the Department of Animal Health, under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

This disease broke out in Quang Nam province in February and spread quickly to 31 communes in such 4 districts of Dien Ban, Que Son, Thang Binh and Duy Xuyen, infecting 3,000 pigs. However, on April 11, the province announced that it had dealt with the outbreak successfully and had put it under control.

Meanwhile, Bac Giang province has been taken off the national list of provinces infected with foot-and-mouth disease but Kon Tum and Son La provinces have still reported cases of the disease in the last 21 days.

Now bird flu is only existent in Dien Bien province.

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MISHAP: Elderly motorist, who told police he confused the gas and brake pedals, drives vehicle into a window.

5 hurt in RB accident

MISHAP: Elderly motorist, who told police he confused the gas and brake pedals, drives vehicle into a window.

By Larry Altman, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/29/2009 07:18:29 PM PDT

An 88-year-old motorist mistook his accelerator for the brake, struck several sidewalk diners and drove his car halfway into a Redondo Beach restaurant Sunday.

Five people went to hospitals for treatment of minor injuries, Redondo Beach police Sgt. Peter Grimm said. More photos

Workers clear debris after a car went over the sidewalk and through the front window of the Ham Supreme Shops restaurant in Redondo Beach on Sunday. Five people were injured. (Steve McCrank / Staff Photographer)

The accident occurred just after 2 p.m. as the elderly Redondo Beach resident tried to park his Jaguar outside Ham Supreme in a shopping center at Pacific Coast Highway and Carnelian Street.

"There were a lot of people there," Grimm said. "The potential for a serious accident was huge. It was hot. It was sunny out. People were strolling in the area. It could have been a lot worse."

The driver told police he was attempting to park his car when he mistook the gas pedal for the brake and lurched forward.

His car struck several people eating at tables on the sidewalk outside Ham Supreme and smashed through a window of the restaurant.

Inside, the car struck several diners and shoved them through a stucco wall into a neighboring tutoring business called Score, trapping them inside.

After the vehicle hit Ham Supreme, it pushed diners through a wall into a nearby business. Officers had to break through a window to free the patrons. (Steve McCrank / Staff Photographer)

Responding police officers, including one who witnessed the crash while patrolling in the parking lot at the time, had to smash the front window of the tutoring business to free the restaurant patrons.

Despite the destructive crash, no one was seriously hurt, Grimm said.

The elderly driver, whose name was not released, was not hurt.

Police confiscated his keys and towed his car, which will be examined to determine if the vehicle had any mechanical problems. The driver told officers the crash was his fault, police said.

The driver was not arrested. Police will file a report with the California Department of Motor Vehicles for his license to be reviewed.

"The Redondo Beach Police Department drove him home," Grimm said.

Pig escapes from truck on highway, but is shot

March 30, 2009

A pig on its way to a slaughterhouse managed to break free on the Pennsylvania Turnpike's Northeast Extension on Sunday, but paid a painful and deadly price for its brief moments of freedom.

State police at Pocono say a trooper shot and killed the pig on the side of the road, near mile marker 80 in Penn Forrest Township, because the pig was injured and bleeding. Troopers said the pig could have also created havoc on the highway by running back into traffic.

The pig was one of many in a truck headed to a slaughterhouse. One or more of the pigs managed to push a gate away from the truck's body and the one that escaped slipped out and onto the road shortly after 11 a.m. Police said it's unusual for a pig to get out of such a truck.

Police say the truck driver, who will not be cited or charged with any violation, took the dead pig with him.

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