Food Poison Journal - Food poisoning outbreaks and litigation: surveillance and analysis

*Diedtra Henderson of the Boston Globe reports that up to 6,000 hogs in California, Kansas, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Utah that ate pet food tainted with industrial chemicals cannot be safely sold to humans, federal authorities said yesterday, and should be euthanized at the farms where they have been held from the market. Several hundred of the swine have already entered the human food supply. 

Federal officials said they were taking the step out of an "abundance of caution," since the concentrations of contaminants in the hogs was likely too low to harm humans. There is nothing in the scientific literature, however, about the effect on humans of consuming melamine and cyanuric acid -- chemicals used to produce plastics and pool cleaners that were illegally added to food ingredients exported from China.

Testimony from Lisa Shames, Acting  Director for Natural Resources and Environment at the Government Accountability Office, was posted on the GAO Web site after she testified during the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing on food safety yesterday.  Ms. Shames pointed out numerous flaws in our food safety system during her testimony, including the government's ability to manage and enforce food recalls:

USDA and FDA did not know how promptly and completely companies were carrying out recalls. The agencies were not using their data systems to effectively monitor and manage their recall programs. They did not track important dates to calculate how long companies take to carry out recalls and the percentage of food that is recovered. Furthermore, managers did not receive routine reports on the progress of ongoing recalls to target program resources. Moreover, neither agency’s guidance provided time frames for how quickly companies should initiate and carry out recalls. Consequently, companies may have had less impetus to notify downstream customers and remove potentially unsafe food from the marketplace.

• USDA and FDA did not promptly verify that recalls had reached all segments of the distribution chain, yet monitoring the effectiveness of a company’s recall actions is the agencies’ primary role in a food recall. For the 10 USDA recalls in 2003 we examined in depth, USDA staff averaged 38 days to complete verification checks, and for the 10 FDA recalls we examined in depth, FDA staff averaged 31 days. These time
frames exceeded the expected shelf life for some perishable foods that were recalled, such as fresh ground beef and fresh-cut bagged lettuce.

• The procedures USDA and FDA used to alert consumers to a recall—press releases and Web postings—may not have been effective. According to consumer groups and others, relatively few consumers may see that information. They identified additional methods to notify the public, such as posting recall notices in grocery stores and directly notifying consumers using “shoppers’ club” information.

In earlier testimony (February 8, 2007) before the Before the House Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA, and Related Agencies, Committee on Appropriations, David M. Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, asserted that GAO's designation of food safety as high-risk was appropriate, stating that our food safety system could be improved in a number of ways.  Mr. Walker concluded his testimony on the high-risk designation:

As I have discussed, GAO designated the federal oversight of food safety as a high-risk area that is in need of a broad-based transformation to achieve greater economy, efficiency, effectiveness, accountability, and sustainability. The high-risk designation raises the priority and visibility of this necessary transformation and thus can bring needed attention to address the weaknesses caused by a fragmented system. GAO stands ready to provide professional, objective, fact-based, and nonpartisan information and thereby assist Congress as it faces tough choices on how to fundamentally reexamine and transform the government. Lasting solutions to high-risk problems offer the potential to save billions of dollars, dramatically improve service to the American public, strengthen public confidence and trust in the performance and accountability of our national government, and ensure the ability of government to deliver on its promises.

Ms. Shames echoed Mr. Walker's sentiments in the conclusion of her own testimony:

The recent outbreaks of E. coli in spinach and Salmonella in peanut butter, along with outbreaks of contaminated pet food, underscore the need of a broad-based transformation of the federal oversight of food safety to achieve greater economy, efficiency, effectiveness, accountability, and sustainability. GAO’s high-risk designation raises the priority and visibility of this necessary transformation and thus can bring needed attention to address the weaknesses caused by a fragmented system. Among the reasons we designated the federal oversight of food safety as a high-risk area is that USDA and FDA have limited recall authority. Even within this limited authority, we found that these agencies could have done better in carrying out their food recall programs. Positively, agency officials are taking actions intended to improve their food recall programs. However, we have not reviewed these actions to determine if they adequately address our recommendations.

Richwood Meat Co. has recalled hamburger patties that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.  The recall was initiated after at least three children became ill with E. coli infections after eating the hamburgers at two California Little League snack shacks, according to the Eureka Reporter.

Three children fell ill after eating hamburgers at the St. Helena and Calistoga Little League baseball snack shacks and have since recovered. Two other possible cases are being investigated.

Sample tests on the children and the meat will be completed Wednesday, said Mike Bowman, spokesperson for the California Department of Health Services.

E. coli O157:H7 infection often causes abdominal cramps and diarrhea, sometimes bloody diarrhea. There is usually little or no fever and the illness typically resolves itself in five to 10 days. Consumers with any of these symptoms should contact their physician.

Infection with this organism can also cause hemolytic uremic syndrome and lead to kidney failure. Those most at risk for serious complications of this food-borne illness include young children, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

The hamburger patties were distributed to Winco, Raley's, Save Mart, and Vons retail stores, as well as to discount grocers, food distributors, and food service vendors in California, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.  Consumers checking their freezers for the potentially E. coli-contaminated hamburgers should note that the hamburgers were produced in April of 2006, and were sold under the Fireriver, Chef’s Pride, Ritz Food, Blackwood Farms, California Pacific Associates, C&C Distributing, Golbon and Richwood brands.

Bill Marler is traveling to Washington, DC today to support victims of three recent foodborne illness outbreaks as they give testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.  Marler provided written testimony for the subcommittee, highlighting eight steps he feels could greatly improve food safety. 

The U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations issued a press release today stating that it will hold a hearing titled, "A Diminished Capacity:  can the FDA Assure the Safety and Security of the Nation's Food Supply?" on Tuesday, April 24, 2007, at 9:30 a.m. in room 2123 Rayburn House Office Building. 

Attorney Bill Marler will attend the hearing, and several Marler Clark clients will testify, including victims of last year's Dole spinach E. coli outbreak, the Taco Bell E. coli outbreak, and the ConAgra peanut butter Salmonella outbreak.

According to the subcommittee Web site:

This hearing is part of the Committee's broader investigation into the safety of our nation's food supply and the declining ability of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct inspections and perform laboratory analysis. The hearing will focus on the recent contamination of pet food, peanut butter and spinach. Witnesses will include victims of food borne illnesses resulting from the outbreaks as well as representatives from the companies responsible for producing the contaminated products.

Other witnesses will include a veterinarian and food- and pet food-industry representatives.