Monthly Archives: May 2015

Tech Tip: A Step in the Right Direction

FootwearCollageAt Nelson-Jameson, we often get questions from customers asking about how to find the right size when ordering boots for female employees. For those not familiar, industrial/work boots are generally sold only in men’s sizes. Hence, things can start off on the wrong foot for buyers hoping to find their employees the right footwear.

Though some variance does occur among manufacturers and among different kinds of footwear styles, a general rule to consider is:“ women can find the right boot by subtracting two.” For example, a U.S. Women’s 8 generally converts to a U.S. Men’s 6. In our experience, this works well for ordering both boots and inserts.

If you have any questions though, don’t hesitate to call us and we’ll “walk” you through the process to help you find the perfect pair of boots for you or your employees! To see our complete collection of footwear, click here.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Science Fare

Food Science Blog Pic

Source: Institute of Food Technologists

The science of sustenance. Diet developments. Munchie modification. Whatever alimental alliteration you choose, it’s all covered under a food processor’s “Research and Development” department. Almost all food manufacturers have an R&D division whose responsibility it is to improve existing products and manufacturing processes, extend current product lines and develop entirely new foods. Today we highlight some of what’s trending in food development.

Apples and Orange (Bananas)
Color is extremely important when it comes to food perception. Studies have shown that when it comes to our experience of food, food color is more important than food labeling or food taste. On a related note, food presentation garners similar results. Enter the “Arctic Apple”, a new breed of non-browning apple. Arctic Apples look and taste like a regular apple, but do not brown like traditional cut apples unless they sustain significant damage, like a fungal or bacterial infection. Proponents of the Arctic Apple feel that nonbrowning apples are more attractive to consumers, and thus will reduce food waste and increase fruit consumption.

Bananas are also getting a makeover. Scientists are currently testing a “super banana” with orange flesh that’s derived from genetically-modifying the banana’s amount of beta-carotene. The peel is yellow and it tastes like a normal banana, but the inside fruit is an attractive shade of cantaloupe orange. The hope is that the super banana will eventually help to prevent blindness in malnourished children around the globe.

A new variety of “Burgundine” asparagus is currently being trialed in the United Kingdom. Burgundine asparagus is the result of crossing normal green asparagus with an heirloom breed of purple asparagus. The resulting violet-hued stalks contain less lignim, the substance that makes asparagus fibrous, and can be eaten raw or cooked. Bring on the dips!

There’s Diamonds in Them Thar Jars
Put down the spoon and back away from the jar. That peanut butter that you were about to lick might be better suited for your home safe than for your cupboard. By mimicking the conditions of the earth’s mantle, a researcher in Germany has turned peanut butter into diamonds. What the what? Yes, peanut butter diamonds. Diamonds need carbon combined with intense heat and pressure in order to form, and, as it turns out, peanut butter is a pretty good source of carbon. Don’t run to Costco just yet, though. The peanut butter diamonds are small, fragile and impure, and eventually disintegrate.

Lick Or Treat
A Google search for “licking the yogurt lid” yields over 90,000 results, Facebook pages and blogs are dedicated to the activity, and ad campaigns by Yoplait and Muller have been based around it. Until recently, however, there was no solution to the obligatory-yogurt-stuck-on-the-lid phenomenon. Morinaga Milk, a Japanese company, has changed that. They’ve developed a nonstick technology for yogurt lids that’s inspired by the lotus leaf, which is known for repelling water and staying dry and clean. As to the obvious question as to why no one’s thought of this before, apparently it’s quite difficult to simultaneously repel yogurt while maintaining container sealability. Pesky physics.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Allergens & Protecting Consumers

allergensMay is Food Allergy Month and this week is Allergen Awareness Week. For the approximate 15 million Americans that have some sort of food allergy, it can be an exhausting task to grocery shop. Each aisle might feel a bit like a minefield. Carefully negotiating the vast array of products to ensure they can find the right foods for themselves and their families may bring stress and trepidation.

On the production side, it can also be daunting for food producers to think about successfully handling allergens in their production process, including the possibility of cross-contamination. Daunting as it may be, lives depend on food processors getting a handle on food allergen concerns and ensuring their products are labeled correctly. Consumers depend on producers to help them negotiate the minefield of allergens and deliver them to the checkout with a sense of security and peace that they have purchased the right food for themselves and their loved ones.

A good deal of emphasis is placed on the so-called “Big 8” allergens: milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soy. Nelson-Jameson stocks a variety of allergen testing supplies that are important parts to an operation’s needs. Recently, Neogen just released the new, long awaited, Reveal Multi-Tree Nut Allergen Test Kit that tests for cashews, pecans, almonds, pistachio, hazelnuts and walnuts.

At Nelson-Jameson we are always here to help give you peace of mind when dealing with the allergen issues that face us, so that your customers can feel some peace of mind, too.

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Making Sense of Listeria

Listeria monocytogenes (ABC News)

Listeria monocytogenes (ABC News)

The Centers for Disease Control estimates “approximately 1600 illnesses and 260 deaths due to listeriosis [infection caused by listeria] occur annually in the United States.” Even though responsible for fewer illnesses than other pathogens that are out there, listeria’s relatively high mortality rate (especially for certain segments of the population) naturally resonates with both consumers and food producers as a focus for concern. This has especially been the case with numerous high-profile listeria cases making headlines in the past several months.

Consumers may be surprised to find out that, opposed to being some isolated super-bug, “Listeria monocytogenes is commonly found in soil and water. Animals can carry the bacterium without appearing ill and can contaminate foods of animal origin, such as meats and dairy products.” Beyond that, food processors, understanding the threat that listeria presents, are especially concerned with the fact that: “When Listeria bacteria get into a food processing factory, they can live there for years, sometimes contaminating food products.”

So what is to be done to combat listeria?   Consumers can check out information on prevention from the CDC here and information from the FDA on proper handling of ready-to-eat, refrigerated foods here. The continuing presence of listeria in the headlines will no doubt also give pause for many food processors to review internal practices/standards, and review local, state, and federal resources to address the issue. Fortunately, risks can be minimized by utilizing programs and products that target some of the following areas: cleaning and sampling; ensuring proper temperatures when processing and handling food; and separating foods and parts of the production/preparation process to avoid cross-contamination.

To assist producers find products that can be of use, Nelson-Jameson has compiled a collection of products, including testing/sampling supplies, color-coded products, and numerous other offerings to both test for and prevent listeria concerns. You can check out these products here.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,