Latest Trade News and Agreements: May 2025
EU: Public Consultation on Potential Countermeasures Affecting US Nuts and Dried Fruits As a reminder, on May 8, the European Commission announced a public consultation on a list of US goods that could become subject to EU countermeasures if ongoing EU-US negotiations do not result in a mutually beneficial outcome and the removal of the […]
Food Safety Update: May 2025
EU: Plant Protection Products Update The European Union has notified the World Trade Organization (WTO) of proposed draft MRLs for benfluralin and benthiavalicarb that would lower the limit to 0.01 mg/kg for tree nuts, peanuts, stone fruits, and grapes. The draft regulation envisages a six-month transition period from the date on which the regulation enters […]
Tariffs: Trump Briefly Threatens EU With 50% Duty
US federal court blocks some of Trump’s steepest tariffs; appeal expected On May 23, 2025, after claiming that trade talks with the European Union were “going nowhere,” US President Donald Trump threatened on social media to impose a 50% tariff on goods from the EU as of June 1, as reported by the Guardian. The […]
Sustainability Update: May 2025
Türkiye-Georgia: Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Update The hazelnuts round table at the INC Congress in Mallorca featured interesting updates on efforts in Türkiye and Georgia to mitigate the threat of the brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB). Native to Asia, the BMSB was first detected in Türkiye around 2017–2018 and was initially confined to the Rize […]
New INC Chairman Elected
Ashok Krishen to serve as Chairman of the INC, leading its vision and global initiatives During the 2025 INC Congress in Mallorca, Ashok Krishen, Managing Director and CEO of the Olam Food Ingredients (ofi) nuts business, was elected as the new INC Chairman for the next four years. Mr. Krishen succeeds Michael Waring, Chairman and […]
Open access online calculator predicts peanut allergic reactions with high accuracy
Background: The Peanut Allergy Prediction Web Tool is a newly developed online aid, which calculates the probability of an individual’s allergic reaction based on their SPT, Ara h 2-specific IgE (Ara h 2-sIgE) and/or basophil activation test (BAT) results. Objective: To validate the diagnostic performance of the online tool and assess its ability to discriminate […]
Clinical and laboratory characteristics of cashew nut allergy in Korean children: Findings from a tertiary hospital
Objective: Cashew nut (CN) allergy is becoming increasingly prevalent and represents a major cause of tree nut-induced anaphylaxis in Korean children. This study investigated the clinical characteristics and laboratory findings of CN allergy in Korean children. Patients and methods: Sixty-four children with a history of CN ingestion, who underwent serum CN-specific immunoglobulin E (CN-sIgE) measurements […]
Oral Immunotherapy with Standardized Peanut Extract: A Game-Changer for Peanut Allergy
Peanut allergy is a persistent and potentially life-threatening condition affecting millions worldwide, necessitating effective therapeutic strategies beyond strict avoidance. Oral immunotherapy (OIT) has emerged as a promising approach, with peanut (Arachis hypogaea) allergen powder dnfp (Palforzia Aimmune therapeutics Brisbane Calif]) being the first FDA-approved standardized OIT for peanut allergy. This review synthesizes current clinical evidence […]
Ara h 2105-124-Specific TH2A Cells Drive Peanut Allergy in DRB1*15:01 Individuals: A Detailed Epitope Analysis
Background: The IgE-mediated CD4 T-cell response to peanut (Arachis hypogaea) is heterogeneous, yet TH2 cells remain central drivers of pathology. This study aimed to dissect this complexity at the epitope level by focusing on the HLA-DRB1*15:01-DRB5*01:01 haplotype. Specifically, we examined how distinct epitope-specific T-cell subsets shape the immunological landscape of peanut allergy in peanut-allergic (PA) […]
Does Medication Status Impact the Effectiveness of Nuts in Altering Blood Pressure and Lipids? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Context: Nut consumption is attributed to improvements in risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), including high blood pressure (BP) and dyslipidemia. However, it is unclear whether these effects are altered with concurrent treatment with BP and lipid-lowering medication. Objective: We sought to investigate the effects of the consumption of whole tree nuts and peanuts (collectively […]