Reading “The Chain: Farm, Factory and the Fate of Our Food,” a new book from journalist Ted Genoways, one begins to wonder who is treated better: the millions of hogs consumed in America each year, or the people who work on the farms and in the factories that breed and slaughter them. The easiest conclusion… Continue Reading
This year saw dozens of well-publicized foodborne illness outbreaks caused by everything from bean sprouts to cilantro to caramel apples. Food Safety News has compiled a list of the 10 most harmful U.S. outbreaks of 2014, in terms of both the number of people who died and the number sickened. This list includes only foodborne illness… Continue Reading
For the Michael and Diane Norman family of Auburn, WA, a weekly tradition has been Pizza Friday. Diane, 48, would alternate picking up pizzas from different restaurants near their home south of Seattle, and she and her husband, their three sons, and their daughter and son-in-law would share them. “On this particular Friday (Sept. 19,… Continue Reading
A new food safety video for California farm workers features the stories of foodborne illness victims. Together, STOP Foodborne Illness and California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (LGMA) produced a video that will be used during training for workers who produce leafy greens in California. It features the stories of Rylee Gustafson and Lauren Bush –… Continue Reading
Public health officials in Oregon suspect that the 4-year-old girl who died from an E. coli infection in September was infected by droppings from the family’s pet goat, according to a report by Lynne Terry at The Oregonian. However, lab tests have not been conclusive, and the state health department is still working to try… Continue Reading
Opinion
More than a few years ago, I made a decision that I never dreamed would result in one of my children having to fight for his life. I was looking for a way to improve my children’s immune systems. I was in the process of removing as many processed foods as possible from our daily… Continue Reading
September has proven to be a tragic month in terms of E. coli infecting children. At the beginning of the month, two young girls in the Pacific Northwest died from unrelated E. coli O157:H7 infections. First, the bacteria took the life of 4-year-old Oregonian Serena Profitt on Sept. 8, and then, days later, 3-year-old Brooklyn… Continue Reading
Dana Dziadul, a 16-year-old from Wake Forest, NC, has been a tireless advocate for food safety since she became a victim of foodborne illness, and she is now the author of a free children’s book about safe food practices. “Food Safety Superstar” teaches kids four practices for staying safe: washing hands, cleaning counters and tables,… Continue Reading
(Editor’s note: These are short profiles of victims of the 2008-09 Salmonella outbreak linked to Peanut Corporation of America products. The jury in the PCA criminal trial is due to resume its deliberations on Thursday morning in Albany, GA.) Shirley Almer Shirley Almer resided in Brainerd, MN. She owned a family bowling alley in Wadena,… Continue Reading
Health officials in Oregon are testing several possible contaminants that could be the source of the E. coli infection that killed a 4-year-old Oregon girl this week, but they warn that the source may never be found. Serena Profitt died on Monday in Portland after suffering from an E. coli infection for more than a… Continue Reading