Protecting Food. Empowering Whistleblowers.
Protecting Food. Empowering Whistleblowers.
It doesn’t seem like the Jimmy John’s sandwich chain can escape negative publicity this week. Once again, its raw sprouts have been linked to a foodborne illness outbreak (despite switching from alfalfa to clover sprouts after a Salmonella outbreak a year ago), sickening 12 people in five states with E. coli this time. On top […]
Great news! Yesterday it was announced that Trader Joe’s has, at last, signed an agreement with the Florida-based farmworker organization – the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) – to support the group’s Fair Food Program and demand better labor standards from the store’s Florida tomato suppliers. The agreement involves an increase in tomato farmworkers’ wages […]
Monsanto, a self-proclaimed solver of global agriculture problems, has really just brought more and more chemicals into our food supply. GAP coalition partner, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), gave the company a failing grade yesterday in documenting eight ways Monsanto has taken agriculture in the wrong direction. In addition to suppressing independent research on […]
Comforting news in Florida this week: Proposed “ag-gag” legislation – criminalizing whistleblowers who take photographs or video to expose wrongdoing at farm operations – was killed in both the House and Senate. Sound familiar? Similar bills in Florida and a few other states were introduced but then failed to pass last year. Unfortunately, they have all […]
Tuesday was Monsanto’s annual shareholder meeting at the biotech company’s headquarters in St. Louis, MO, where corporate changes were voted on – including a proposal to study the financial risks and impacts of Monsanto’s genetically engineered crops. The proposal was submitted last August by Harrington Investments Inc. (HII), a socially responsible investment advisory firm and […]
Disappointing news came from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Friday regarding a new proposal to “modernize” the country’s poultry inspection, although the agency would have you believe it’s actually a good idea. In an attempt to “save money for businesses and taxpayers while improving food safety,” the USDA plans to expand a pilot program – […]
Biotechnology and crop chemical giant Monsanto, also known as a consistent violator of food integrity in FIC terms, has been linked to yet another breach of global community values. The Associated Press reported Monday that Argentina’s tax agency raided a Monsanto contractor and discovered “slave-like conditions” among its corn farmworkers. AP writes: The AFIP tax […]
Decision by McDonald’s, Burger King & Taco Bell May Prompt Others to Follow Suit Whistleblower Questioned Practices by Beef Products, Inc. Years Ago (Washington, D.C.) – In the waning days of 2011, fast-food giants McDonald’s, Burger King, and Taco Bell announced they will no longer use a controversial beef product produced by food behemoth Beef […]
The FDA made a notable announcement yesterday related to combating the ongoing threat of human antibiotic resistance – increasingly linked to antibiotic overuse in food-producing animals. The agency issued a new order limiting the use of cephalosporins, a class of antimicrobial drugs, given to cattle, swine and poultry. In order to reduce the presence of […]
The day that whistleblowers are given awards by their superiors – instead of pink slips – would be a miraculous day for public safety. Meanwhile (and that’s a long while at this rate), any support rewarding their brave honesty helps all whistleblowers know the risks are appreciated. Good news on the affirmation front comes from […]