News

Fera
Filter

Fera regularly share news and insight around a range of subjects across the agri-food chain.

Heavy Metals in Baby Food
Fera Science Limited’s proficiency testing group, Fapas® is making a significant contribution to help the Baby Food Counci, meet the challenge of reducing heavy metals in commercially produced infant food in the USA. Read more
New packaging to replace plastic must protect food from pests
As concerns over climate change grow, the food and drink industry has been developing new food packaging to reduce the environmental impact of fossil-derived plastics. But it’s not always easy. Not only must they ensure these new materials are safe for food contact, they must also provide adequate barrier properties to protect the packaged foodstuff from the external environment. Read more
How future tools can predict toxicity in food and protect consumers
Food production is a complex process resulting in a significant number of chemical reactions. These reactions produce ‘compounds of interest’, on which regulatory authorities have set acceptable and unacceptable levels – often referred to as maximum residue limits (MRLs). Read more
Brexit will make determining pesticide levels in foods even more important
World population has increased from one billion in 1800 to 7.7 billion today. During this period, the use of pesticides has played a critical role to protect crops from insects, weeds, diseases and moulds, ensuring that food supply keeps up with the increasing demand. Read more
Circular Yorkshire Month 2020
Fera Science Ltd has been working in collaboration with the York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), all of our region’s local authorities and partner organisations region-wide to develop a plan to reshape the region’s economy in order to address the challenges and opportunities arising from the pandemic. Our shared vision is that the region will emerge greener, fairer and stronger as a direct result of the economic reshaping plan. Read more
The ‘Plant Pathology’ Best Student Paper prize for 2020
We are delighted to announce that the journal ‘Plant Pathology’ has awarded the Best Student Paper prize for 2020 to Ines Vazquez-Iglesias from Fera Science Ltd. Read more
Has the debate on gene editing missed the question?
A recent amendment to the UK Agricultural Bill, tabled by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Science and Technology in Agriculture and backed by a cohort of leading UK research institutes, proposed the acceptance of gene edited (GE) crops and livestock in UK agriculture – ultimately in UK produced food. Read more
Bio-based packaging needs rigorous testing to avoid a new food safety threat
In recent years, the media has highlighted multiple examples of food being contaminated by what we call ‘food contact materials’ (FCMs). This definition includes packaging or any materials that can come into contact with food during its life cycle. Examples of contamination include bisphenol A and phthalates from plastic packaging and containers, primary aromatic amines from nylon kitchenware and formaldehyde from melamine kitchenware. Read more
Fera - Stepping-up for African plant health and biosecurity
Fera has been at the forefront of raising awareness on the frailty of African plant health and biosecurity and the gains to be achieved in building national capacity. Read more

Copyright © 2025 Fera Science Limited (“Fera”). All rights reserved.

Registered Office: York BioTech Campus, Sand Hutton, York, YO41 1LZ. Registered in England & Wales, No 9413107. VAT Registration ID: GB 456401013
For further information about how Fera uses any personal data collected from you, please see our Privacy Notice at www.fera.co.uk/privacy-policy.