As 2012 comes to a close, the Food Manufacturing editors have put our heads together to recap the top food news stories of the year. Stay tuned all week as we bring you the year in review.
Each day, Food Manufacturing delivers subscribers two newsletters filled with up-to-the-minute news relevant to food industry professionals. 2012 was a year of big news. Readers of Today In Food and the Food Mfg. Insider were quick to pounce on the following stories. Here are the top 10 most-read stories of the year, according to readers of Food Manufacturing newsletters:
10. Worker Dies After Falling At Cargill Plant
Authorities in central Illinois are working to determine what led to the death of a 48-year-old Heyworth man after a fall last week at a Cargill Inc. soybean-processing plant. [read more]
9. Coca-Cola Addiction Cited In Woman's Death
Experts say a New Zealand woman's 2-gallon-a-day Coca-Cola habit probably contributed to her death, a conclusion that led the soft-drink giant to note that even water can be deadly in excessive amounts. [read more]
8. Two Dead In Beef Plant Murder-Suicide
An employee opened fire outside a northeastern Georgia food processing plant Thursday, fatally shooting his wife before killing himself, authorities said. [read more]
7. KFC To Pay $8M In Food Poisoning Case
An Australian judge has ordered KFC to pay 8 million Australian dollars ($8.3 million) to the family of a Sydney girl left brain damaged after eating one of the fast food giant's chicken wraps. [read more]
6. Twinkies Likely To Survive Hostess Liquidation
The tasty cream-filled golden spongecakes known as Twinkies are likely to survive, even though their maker will be sold in bankruptcy court. [read more]
5. Butterball Employees Arrested For Animal Cruelty
Hidden-camera video secretly shot at a North Carolina Butterball factory farm by an undercover investigator with the animal protection organization Mercy For Animals (MFA) has led to felony and misdemeanor animal cruelty charges of five Butterball employees by state authorities. [read more]
4. Pet Food Company Owner Found Dead
A Missouri pet food company owner indicted earlier this month in a federal fraud case has been found dead. [read more]
3. Toxic Grass Responsible For Cattle Deaths
The sun was setting when Jerry Abel's cattle began to bellow on his Central Texas ranch. They were convulsing by the time he rushed to the pasture. Within hours, Abel had lost almost all his herd. The culprit: toxic grass. [read more]
2. Worker Cooked To Death At Tuna Plant
Authorities say a 62-year-old employee was cooked to death at a Southern California seafood plant for tuna maker Bumble Bee Foods. [read more]
1. ConAgra To Buy Del Monte Canada
ConAgra Foods Inc. is making another international deal by acquiring Del Monte Canada. [read more]
Read our other FM Rewinds:
Top Recalls & Outbreaks Of 2012 | Favorite Photos Of 2012 | Favorite Features Of 2012 | Biggest Disasters Of 2012
