FoodID

04/07/2022

Important article by Laura Reiley Washington Post: “Some beef raised without antibiotics’ tests positive for antibiotics... Consumers may not be getting what they pay for."

Organic, naturally raised, antibiotic-free — a whole industry has burgeoned around meat verification and special labels consumers can trust. Those labels may be fallible.

04/07/2022

Antibiotic labels are being undermined by lax verification and enforcement. Until reforms are made, customers should not rely on the accuracy of these labels

Many consumers choose higher-priced steaks, burgers and other beef products from cattle that have been raised without antibiotics. The USDA approves meat labels with claims such as ‘No Antibiotics Ever’, ‘No Added Antibiotics’ and ‘Raised without Antibiotics’, but how confident can shopp...

04/07/2022

Today, Science published “Policy reforms for antibiotic use claims in livestock,” which shows that “today’s ‘Raised Without Antibiotics’ labels lack integrity.”

Study is co-authored by FoodID’s CEO Kevin Lo, alongside Lance Price and Laura Rogers of the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University.

We tested for 17 antibiotics administered via feed and water over 7 months in beef intended for the “Raised Without Antibiotics” market. In total, we tested 699 cattle from 312 lots and 33 different RWA certified feedyards​​.

The findings: 42% of feedyards had at least one animal test positive. Lots with at least one positive test represented approximately 15% of the RWA cattle processed during the study period.

What does this mean? “...the integrity of the USDA’s RWA labels is being undermined by lax verification and enforcement. Until either the USDA acts to rigorously verify RWA claims or retailers eliminate their own safe harbor of ignorance, consumers should not rely on the accuracy of these labels.”

Check out the full manuscript of the study in Science.

Antibiotics detected in “raised without antibiotics” cattle underscore the need to ensure the integrity of labeling claims

11/09/2021

We absolutely need to know more about what is in our food. Robust testing and transparency can ensure food label integrity.

There’s no way to confirm that a crop was grown organically. Randy Constant exploited our trust in the labels—and made a fortune.

10/21/2021

"What we find is that there is a real lack of verification in the industry. Most food claims are unsubstantiated today and Belcampo is just one example of mislabeling and fraud in food." FoodID CEO Kevin Lo in NBC Bay Area.

A Bay-Area based company that promised its customers organic and sustainable cuts of meat from its own farm is suddenly closing its restaurants and butcher shops for good.

03/24/2021

FoodID CEO, Kevin Lo joined Cheddar to discuss our new funding round and how testing meat and poultry can help prevent the next pandemic. Check it out: https://cheddar.com/media/foodid-announces-12-million-raise-to-expand-pork-beef-and-poultry-testing

03/08/2021

Excited to share a critical milestone in the FoodID journey. We have closed our Series B led by S2G Ventures. Thank you Chloe Sorvino of Forbes for the deeper look into the FoodID story, how we got here, and where we're going. Check it out:

Overuse of antibiotics while raising America’s livestock is putting humans at risk. Food ID says its rapid-result test for slaughterhouses is the solution the meat industry needs.

02/12/2021

Antibiotic use in meat & poultry production has been proven to increase antibiotic resistance in humans and animals – making us more susceptible to deadly diseases and viruses.

Today, in Forbes, a new national poll by Zogby Strategies showed antibiotic-free claims are important to two-thirds of Americans. And a majority want independently-verified data to back up claims.

Americans are demanding a culture of "test and verify".

Read more on Forbes:

American consumers are demanding transparency from meat and poultry producers and government regulators when it comes to “antibiotic-free” claims.

10/02/2020

A reminder that the overuse of antibiotics in livestock is helping to make it hard and sometimes impossible to treat bacterial infections. Thank you Business Insider and Thor Benson for reminding us that the superbug crisis is "already a pandemic".

Diseases caused by bacteria already kill 700,000 people every year. The threat is slowly growing, with few ways to stop it.

08/21/2020

Great work by Vox to explain the pandemic risk lurking in factory farms. These farms are ideal environments for the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria. We believe that testing can play a critical role in knowing our food and managing the risks of what we eat.

We've engineered the perfect environment for deadly new germs. Become a Video Lab member! http://bit.ly/video-lab In the last half-century, the global produc...

08/21/2020

Thank you Foodable for helping to expose the need to know our food! Cost, speed and complexity is no longer a barrier to food safety testing.

The FoodID platform tests for the presence of antibiotics and other adulterants in a comprehensive, rigorous and near real time proprietary process. FoodID i...

07/22/2020

Proud to partner with the Cooks Venture team.

"Cooks Venture is foraging a whole new way to raise chicken, "says (FoodID Co-Founder Bill) Niman. "By using superior breeds and raising them on pasture, they are making tastier, more nourishing meat. By partnering with FoodID, they are creating full transparency in their process."

Check out their Testing Report:

Cooks Venture has partnered with Food In-Depth to test for the presence of antibiotics and other adulterants in their pasture-raised heirloom chickens. Check out their testing report.