Helena Bottemiller is a Washington, DC-based reporter covering food policy, politics and regulation for Food Safety News. After years of being a self-described food policy wonk, Helena delved into the food safety world for the first time while writing her thesis on the politics of food regulation at Claremont McKenna College in Los Angeles, where she graduated with a degree in Government. In her spare time, Helena does volunteer media relations for Lumana Credit, a small microfinance non-profit serving rural Ghana.
Several hundred schools may have received recalled beef, USA Today reported Wednesday. The beef, potentially contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, was not purchased by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA)...
A new global monitoring tool identifies the United States as one of the top five worst food safety offenders, along with China, Turkey, Iran, and Spain. The findings are based...
Food safety concerns, including the ongoing hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) Salmonella recall, were discussed in a Senate appropriations subcommittee hearing on the president's 2011 budget request for the U.S. Food...
Congressman promises "relentless" oversight after FSIS veterinarian blows whistle on humane handling and food safety violationsCongressional oversight subcommittee chairman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) is vowing to increase oversight over USDA meat...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not exercise adequate oversight over certain widely used food additives, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released last week.The GAO,...
Wisconsin has joined a growing list of state governments taking BPA regulation into their own hands. Governor Jim Doyle signed a bill into law Wednesday banning the chemical from being...
As the list of products recalled for containing Salmonella-contaminated hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP)--a little-known, but widely-used flavoring ingredient--continues to grow, more politicians and public health experts are calling on the...
Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) predicted Tuesday that, if all goes well, the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, S. 510, will be "on the President's desk by May."As chairman of the...
New study estimates foodborne illness costs U.S. $152 billion annually, building momentum for FDA food safety reform bill as foodborne illness victims prepare to lobby SenateFoodborne illness is costing the...
As Chinese businesses try to bolster their food safety image, it seems they can't catch a break. Over the past several weeks food regulators have been working to remove melamine-tainted...
Sustainable agriculture, consumer groups, Monsanto encourage farmers, consumers to submit comments to U.S. Department of Agriculture Amid ongoing uncertainty over the safety and efficacy of genetically engineered (GE) crops, or...
Updated with witness lists and Senate hearing detailsIt is going to be a busy week for food and health issues in the Capital. President Obama is expected to announce the...
PART II of our conversation with Jerry Wojtala, executive director of the International Food Protection Training InstituteThe President's 2011 federal budget was recently amended to include an $8 million request...
A Conversation with Jerry Wojtala, executive director of the International Food Protection Training InstituteThe President's 2011 federal budget was recently amended to include an $8 million request to fund the...
It is going to be a busy week for food and health issues in the Capital. President Obama is expected to announce the way forward for health care reform and...
Marler Clark