A senator and representative have introduced legislation that would give the FDA and CDC authority to enter and collect samples at feedlots during foodborne illness outbreaks.
Federal agencies currently cannot collect samples from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) unless the operators voluntarily give them access. This has impeded investigations into
Continue Reading Legislation would give the FDA, and CDC power to collect samples from animal farms during outbreaks
Just a month ago, the Environmental Protection Agency rejected revisions to the Clean Water Act submitted in 2017 for more effective regulations of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs).
In response, the San Francisco-based Center for Food Safety and 12 other groups sued the EPA for its denial to regulate factory
Continue Reading Lawsuit over farm manure disposal could also help remove pathogens from irrigation water
— OPINION —
People always ask me why do leafy green E. coli outbreaks keep happening. I think the bottom line is that retailers, restaurants, growers, processors and the government simply do not give a cow’s pie about the sickened and/or dead consumers – they are simply the cost of
Continue Reading Publisher’s Platform: A picture is worth far more than 1,000 words
USDA’s Farm Service Agency makes loans to family farms that are categorically exempt (“CatEx”) from the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”), which permits agencies to make such exemptions.
Since 2016, the FSA has extended that exemption for loan actions to medium-sized “concentrated animal feeding operations” (“CAFOs”).
But in a “down
Continue Reading Federal Judge blocks break for medium-sized factory farms
They’ve many years invested and their latest legal arguments ran 198 pages, but Food and Water Watch and their many allies wanted something pretty simple.
They wanted the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to grant a writ of mandamus compelling the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to answer
Continue Reading EPA likely will have to speak up on CAFOs
A letter sent Tuesday to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan urges him to unleash EPA’s powers on so-called “factory farms.” The letter is signed by 218 known and unknown groups.
The many groups want more federal oversight of the organizations USDA calls “Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations” or CAFOs. They
Continue Reading The pressure put on EPA over ‘factory farms’
In a new report, the FDA continues to express concerns about farm animal operations close by and adjacent to produce growing fields, specifically peach orchards this time.
The report, released June 11, outlines data from an investigation into a 2020 Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak linked to whole fresh peaches that sickened
Continue Reading Report shows reasons for concern about animal operations near produce
The FDA’s big news is that there is now an EPA-approved protocol for developing pathogen treatments for pre-harvest agricultural water. The agency’s nagging news is that its inspectors still can’t collect water or any other samples from animal ag operations without the express permission of the landowners.
The FDA’s top
Continue Reading FDA has big hopes for outbreak research with new water protocols
Along with feedlot dust blowing in the wind and surface irrigation water flowing adjacent to feedlots, flies captured in leafy greens plots near feedlots are capable of transferring E. coli from animal operations to produce fields.
Set for publication in August in the “Journal of Food Protection,” new research from
Continue Reading Researchers confirm flies can transfer E. coli from feedlots to produce fields
Animal and environmental organizations, joined by several rural community activists, want a U.S. District Court judge to strike down Obama-era regulations that give a break to smaller mid-sized concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs).
Beryl A. Howell, chief judge for District of Columbia, is hearing the case, filed against USDA and
Continue Reading 3-year old break for medium-sized CAFOs gets challenged in D.C. court
