Ragesoss, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Food Safety Talk 283: 283 Tylenols

Added on June 14, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The guys jump right into the food safety on this one by talking about a new paper investigating the causative agent linked to Daily Harvest's/tara flour outbreak and FDA's Center for Natural Products Research. The guys then go into some keto talk, and stuff they are watching/reading. The conversation goes to a cookie dough-linked Salmonella outbreak and Ben's theory on how eating "baked" cookies might have actually led to an illness. They go on to talk about a warning letter for a sprouts producer and a question Ben received about a rusty piece of equipment. The episode ends on a discussion of toxic mushrooms (and false mushrooms) leading to illnesses. Oddly, the show title is liked to the episode number, but not on purpose.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 282: The Fabulous Ms. Mertzel

Added on June 1, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with the guys talking about Ben's Internet situation, Don introduces a new show concept: Department Head Chair Talk and then teases new Food Safety Talk t-shirts. The conversation goes to then goes to couple of talks that they gave Ben at the American Association for Agricultural Education and Don to students at the Rutgers Law Cannabis Certificate program. The guys then talk about the difference between cleaning and sanitizing as explained really simply (with special props to the Conference for Food Protection Disinfection Committee). The discussion goes to a fantastic article about room temperature butter and then go on to AI and Chat-GPT. The show ends on discussion on a Salmonella outbreak linked to sushi in Colorado.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

A couple of Ben’s front yard chickens (image from: Ben Chapman)

Food Safety Talk 281: Artisanal Poultry Manure

Added on May 21, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with a discussion of Ben's front yard chickens (including some new additions) and managing the animals both Don and Ben's houses. They go on to talk about agritourism and food safety risks. The guys then talk about their Conference for Food Protection 2023 experiences. The guys revisited Chat GPT and AI as tools. They talk aflatoxin, cookie dough and pathogens in raw flour. The show ends with a chat about a cantaloupe-linked Salmonella outbreak (and a great FDA report).

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Picking blackberries in Oklahoma (image: Geo Lightspeed7, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)

Food Safety Talk 280: Drupelet

Added on April 5, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The episode starts with the guys talking about hockey documentaries (okay, it was just Ben) and cannabis food safety laws. Then the conversation goes to the Conference for Food Protection where the guys talk about the recent educational program webinars and highlight some interesting issues coming up at the biennial meeting. Highlight, not deliberate. The conversation goes to a Daily Mail article on spring cleaning refrigerators and all the millions of bacteria that are lurking there. The discussion goes to changes at FDA and testimony at a subcommittee of the House Oversight Committee related to infant formula. The show ends on a deep dive on a paper linking UTIs to meat where the guys explore what they think it means and doesn't mean.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 279: Jenny Might Be Using AI

Added on March 29, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with a discussion of the types of drinks the guys have been enjoying recently, and then the conversation switches to their recent travel itineraries to Brazil and Michigan. Don and Ben talk about airplane travel viewing and then talk goes to FDA restructuring and Bill Marler's Get the F out of the FDA campaign. They go on to talk about the politics and science of COVID origins. As the show, unbeknownst to the hosts, winds down they talk about food truck food safety and then show ends abruptly as one Ben's kids gets sick.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Brazil - Wikipedia

Food Safety Talk 278: Seemingly Unrelated Movies

Added on March 6, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

Ben and Don start the show talking about some British panel shows but quickly get into the world of food safety through a Toronto health inspector story from the 1980s. Ben goes on to tell Don about his interactions with ChatGPT integrating food safety Don's favorite Caddyshack references. The guys talk quite a bit about the utility (and entertainment potential of AI). They then talk about two or three (maybe?) 30 year food safety anniversaries, and a nice profile of friend of the show Bill Marler. Don and Ben then deconstruct foods that Bill doesn't eat. They end the show talking about a question from their friend and retired UC Davis faculty member Christine Bruhn and her questions on best before/expiration and sell by dates.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 277: Safe As It Ever Was

Added on February 28, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben start the conversation with their reflections on Frank Yiannas' resignation and FDA's restructuring. They also talk about the passing of their IAFP friend Paul Hall. Don gives Ben an early birthday present and then they really get into the world of FDA warning letters and criminal charges for food safety violations. The conversation goes to pit bbq, listeria in train food and kitchen design for food safety. The episode ends on a discussion of the peer review process (not the system we would have created but the system we have).

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

A painting of colorful apartment buildings and a clown. Landlord Yelp in the style of Emily Carr — Landlord Yelp in the style of Emily Carr

Food Safety Talk 276: Landlord Yelp

Added on February 20, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben open the episode talking about internet things, shadow networks and how many things are on the pipe. The get into food safety by talking by their collaborative work that has made contaminated spice jars all the rage. They go on to discuss stuff that the non-food safety media might find funny about food safety and changes in the FDA Model Food Code. Their discussion goes to life hacks (in Richard Fingers) like color coding dish towels. The show ends on dog bowls and Chat GPT.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

We can pickle that characters from Portlandia

Food Safety Talk 275: We Can Pickle That!

Added on January 25, 2023 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with a discussion about a wide variety of seemingly unrelated music including Men at Work, Burt Bacharach, Sting and school musicals before shifting to a quick chat about fun Netflix movies. The guys move into actual food safety talk by the way of microbes on used books and unsafe pickling procedures. The conversation goes to cottage foods and having pets in home food processing kitchens. Don and Ben talk about food safety fights between franchisers and franchisees, expiration dates and the risks of grapefruits and medication. The show ends on a review of FDA's structure and the science of science.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Picture shows a Thanksgiving meal spread at the Chapman house — Turkey named Ham, exactly as shown (bottom right)

Food Safety Talk 274: My Turkey Named Ham

Added on December 24, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with a discussion of Ben's new podcasting space that is equipped with a bed and an actual working executive office. The guys get to actual food safety topics somewhat quicker than normal, chatting about Thanksgiving preparation, thawing a very large turkey (at room temperature, in an insulated cooler). Turkey-thawing leads to a discussion on enzyme kinetics and turkey pardoning. The conversation goes to National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day (which neither knew was a thing) and all of the advice that goes along with that holiday. The guys talk about pre-print papers, and published papers and how they are talked about differently in media (or should be, or shouldn't be). In a non-food safety detour, they talk about higher education and the impact of sports gambling on NCAA sports. The show ends on some follow-up and a quick chat about ingredient-driven recalls (that may not be risk-based).

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 273: 50 or 70 School Buses

Added on November 28, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The guys are joined by special mystery guest Kaitlyn Casulli and assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of Georgia. The group talks about what being a new faculty member is like and how each started their careers. Don, Ben and Kaitlyn do a deep dive on what it's like to be an outsider in a discipline and creating a niche. The discussion goes to difficult extension and outreach topics including prepping for the apocalypse (with food safety in mind). The conversation goes to better process control schools, North Carolina BBQ and food sharing with the unhoused. The conversation ends on an update on Poisoned (the book and documentary) and home-delivered meal kits and getting rid of WWI rations.

Image of three characters staring from Revenge of the Nerds — Image from Enews.com

Food Safety Talk 272: Well Intentioned Nerds Protecting Us

Added on October 24, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben are joined by mystery guest Matt Haughey of Metafilter, Ask Metafilter, Slack and Salesforce (and many other Internet things). The guys talk through a variety of topics including podcasting, common podcast friends and social media stuff. They do a deep-dive on moving to a new geographic location and how the food and environment can impact lots of things including how people feel. The guys chat about different food laws in different countries and a non-food safety person's view on what food safety is. The conversation touches on raw milk, 3D food printers and home-based food businesses (including one linked to a Salmonella outbreak).

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 271: Low Rise 7

Added on October 19, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The conversation starts with the guys going through a little bit of nostalgia for the dorms they stayed in when they were in college including architecture and the various amenities each of their housing situations afforded them. The conversation then moves into food safety at a Jersey Chipotle restaurant and a whistleblower lawsuit. The guys talk about Ben's experience at the National Association of Convenience Stores and how that sector is growing their food safety focus. The discussion moves to TikTok trends including butter boards and good TikTok accounts. The guys go on to talk about the review of FDA functions, a paper that Ben would have rejected on food safety myths, a soft cheese linked outbreak and pandemic-influenced Norovirus trends. The show ends on a revisit of reusable shopping bag food safety.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Hanna Raskin working behind a large amount of seafood

Food Safety Talk 270: Giving My Readers Botulism

Added on October 9, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben are joined by Hanna Raskin, from The Food Section, which has an amazing tagline: "Covering food and drink across the American South as though it mattered as much as crime and politics (because it does)." After a quick 20 questions game featuring Don's guesses, Hanna, Don and Ben talk about food risks, what it's like to be a food journalist and how food food safety factors in. The group chats about communal silverware, meal kit regulation and end the show talking a bit about FDA and leafy greens.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Bruce McCulloch singing about the Daves he knows

Food Safety Talk 269: The Daves We Don't Know

Added on August 30, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

After taking a month-long hiatus from Food Safety Talk while Ben was in Canada with no Internet the guys are back at it. The conversation starts on electronic workplace productivity surveillance and how that doesn't really work in the academic world. The conversation shifts to remembering Don and Ben's friend and food safety superstar Brian Nummer who recently passed away suddenly. The theme of the show becomes "catch Ben up on what he missed" and feedback. The guys talk Pink Sauce, recall notices, hydrogen and microbes in canned foods, soaking grains at room temperature overnight and chicken liver pate. Don and Ben talk monkeypox, a man who has farted for 5 years and issues related to clean-in-place processing equipment. The show ends with the guys critiquing a couple of food waste/spoilage articles.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Don and Ben laughing while recording — Photo courtesy of Deep New England

Food Safety Talk 268: Add A Catchy Header

Added on August 3, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

This is the Live From IAFP Special, where Don and Ben get together in person for their yearly event with listeners from around the world. The show starts with a discussion of the cool things they've seen (and some of the stuff they have missed) at the IAFP Annual Meeting. They talk about an USDA-FSIS's announcement about making Salmonella an adulterant in frozen breaded poultry and what it's impacts may be. They do a bunch of follow-up on Pink Sauce and flour. The guys are then joined by listeners Deep State, Deep In The Heart of Texas, Deep New England, Doxxed Robert and Veronica Illstopatthat to chat about things like play dough, COVID in food settings, Daily Harvest, hyper realistic cakes and the challenges of food safety on TV.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 267: Tara.Freezer.Olaf

Added on July 26, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The episode begins on Ben's fascination with the Mac OS dark mode and Don's email rules. Ben tells Don about his food safety happenings while on vacation, including using a massive turkey thermometer. The guys talk about complications around information sharing between investigators and businesses during a current ongoing Cyclospora outbreak (with unknown source). The conversation goes to freeze dried blueberries with lead and the safety of skittles. The show ends on a deep dive on updates on Daily Harvest and Big Olaf.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Album cover for Rancid's and out come the wolves

Food Safety Talk 266: Can The Rancid Hurt You?

Added on July 10, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The show starts with Don's smoke detectors going off (and listen to the after show for how that got resolved) and Ben yet again relying on Don to be his therapist. The guys talk about stuff they are watching including some historical documentaries on politics and music and gardening shows. The food safety content kicks off with a deep dive on an outbreak of listeriosis linked to a Florida ice cream company, Big Olaf. The conversation focuses on the odd communication from the company and Florida officials, and then the guys do some googling (never read the comments). The discussion then goes to meal kits, specifically Daily Harvest and Revive Superfoods which both are experiencing recalls and may have a common ingredient. The show ends on a few quick hits on frozen butter, slow cookers and rat lung worm.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Or pantheon wall paper (image from Vecteezy)

Food Safety Talk 265: Pantheon Of Papers

Added on July 1, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

The guys start this episode talking about TikTok dances, and that is Don's founding member of Ithacon. The conversation goes on to Daily Harvest supplied lentil and leek crumble-linked illnesses. They do a deep dive on what might be the cause, communications and compare the event with Lucky Charms. The guys talk about the upcoming IAFP meeting and a few questions that Ben received about refrigeration in developing countries (with some turns-outs). The episode ends with some listener feedback and a discussion of the difference between young, old, pregnant and immunocompromised (YOPI) populations and highly susceptible populations.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

Food Safety Talk 264: Live From AFDO

Added on June 16, 2022 by Ben Chapman.

Don and Ben head to Phoenix (Glendale really) for a road trip and record this episode in front of about 200 attendees of the 126th Association of Food and Drug Officials' Annual Educational Conference. The guys talk about a local (to Glendale) restaurant and their famous salt wall. They go through a list of 25 foods that need to be treated differently (or don't) when held out of refrigeration. They talk about the weird emails they get, gig economy food apps and explain how the answer questions on Risky or Not. Then they open the floor mic up to audience questions and talk about freeze-dried meats, oysters from someone's waterfront property and old grenadine.

Show notes so you can follow along at home: