Change that matters...
 

February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

The order, which affects the Peanut Corporation of America and a
subsidiary, will remain in force for one year. Agriculture Secretary Tom
Vilsack also stripped the company’s chief executive of his seat on a
board that advises the government on peanut quality standards.

David Shipman, an acting administrator at the Agriculture Department,
said, “The actions of P.C.A. indicate that the company lacks business
integrity and business honesty, which seriously and directly hinders its
ability to do business with the federal government.”

The department’s actions came on a day when senators heard testimony
from health experts and a Food and Drug Administration official, who
acknowledged that gaps in the food safety system had contributed to
delays in catching the outbreak of salmonella in peanut butter and other
products that spread to 43 states. The problem has been traced to a
peanut processing facility in Blakely, Ga.

***Dr. Stephen Sundlof, the director of food safety programs at the
F.D.A., told the Senate Agriculture Committee that the agency’s
investigation was hindered in part by the absence of laws requiring
companies to report contamination at processing facilities. Dr. Sundlof
said food makers were required to tell the agency about safety issues
only after shipping products.***

The food and drug agency and the Justice Department are conducting a
criminal investigation into whether the Peanut Corporation of America
knowingly sold contaminated products. The company has denied it acted
illegally, and as recently as Wednesday asserted that inspectors had
given the Blakely plant a “superior” rating last year.

Federal oficials on Thursday recalled thousands of food kits with peanut
butter that had been sent to aid victims of the Kentucky ice storms.

At Thursday’s hearing, Gabrielle Meunier of South Burlington, Vt., whose
7-year-old son, Christopher, had to be hospitalized after exposure to
salmonella bacteria, likened the country’s approach to food safety to “a
game of Russian roulette.”

The committee chairman, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, called on
President Obama to put “the weight of his office” behind reforming the
federal government’s system for detecting food contamination.

This week, Mr. Obama said his administration would thoroughly review the
operations of the F.D.A. and complained that the agency had been slow
responding to food safety problems.

Still, Dr. Sundlof said, “the American food supply continues to be among
the safest in the world.”

But Mr. Harkin lamented that the recall of products poisoned with
salmonella had led to safety questions about “basic items like peanut
butter.”

Mr. Harkin, who used a peanut butter sandwich and a jar of peanut butter
as props during the hearing, added, “If that’s not safe, we have to ask,
what is?”


- - -


"...absence of laws requiring companies to report contamination at
processing facilities."


Not for long, I bet.

Change that matters...
 

Yeah, until they make a huge contribution and get a secret waiver...
Openness you know, right...snerk. I hope Pelosi fails, does that
make me a racist?

Change that matters...
 

On Feb 5, 11:07*pm, HK wrote:
February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

The order, which affects the Peanut Corporation of America and a
subsidiary, will remain in force for one year. Agriculture Secretary Tom
Vilsack also stripped the company’s chief executive of his seat on a
board that advises the government on peanut quality standards.

David Shipman, an acting administrator at the Agriculture Department,
said, “The actions of P.C.A. indicate that the company lacks business
integrity and business honesty, which seriously and directly hinders its
ability to do business with the federal government.”

The department’s actions came on a day when senators heard testimony
from health experts and a Food and Drug Administration official, who
acknowledged that gaps in the food safety system had contributed to
delays in catching the outbreak of salmonella in peanut butter and other
products that spread to 43 states. The problem has been traced to a
peanut processing facility in Blakely, Ga.

***Dr. Stephen Sundlof, the director of food safety programs at the
F.D.A., told the Senate Agriculture Committee that the agency’s
investigation was hindered in part by the absence of laws requiring
companies to report contamination at processing facilities. Dr. Sundlof
said food makers were required to tell the agency about safety issues
only after shipping products.***

The food and drug agency and the Justice Department are conducting a
criminal investigation into whether the Peanut Corporation of America
knowingly sold contaminated products. The company has denied it acted
illegally, and as recently as Wednesday asserted that inspectors had
given the Blakely plant a “superior” rating last year.

Federal oficials on Thursday recalled thousands of food kits with peanut
butter that had been sent to aid victims of the Kentucky ice storms.

At Thursday’s hearing, Gabrielle Meunier of South Burlington, Vt., whose
7-year-old son, Christopher, had to be hospitalized after exposure to
salmonella bacteria, likened the country’s approach to food safety to “a
game of Russian roulette.”

The committee chairman, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, called on
President Obama to put “the weight of his office” behind reforming the
federal government’s system for detecting food contamination.

This week, Mr. Obama said his administration would thoroughly review the
operations of the F.D.A. and complained that the agency had been slow
responding to food safety problems.

Still, Dr. Sundlof said, “the American food supply continues to be among
the safest in the world.”

But Mr. Harkin lamented that the recall of products poisoned with
salmonella had led to safety questions about “basic items like peanut
butter.”

Mr. Harkin, who used a peanut butter sandwich and a jar of peanut butter
as props during the hearing, added, “If that’s not safe, we have to ask,
what is?”

- - -

"...absence of laws requiring companies to report contamination at
processing facilities."

Not for long, I bet.

Too bad the Dwarf Army never got any........

Change that matters...
 

On Feb 5, 11:07*pm, HK wrote:
The order, which affects the Peanut Corporation of America and a
subsidiary, will remain in force for one year.

Obama amounts to peanuts. It figures.

Change that matters...
 

HK wrote:
February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

The order, which affects the Peanut Corporation of America and a
subsidiary, will remain in force for one year. Agriculture Secretary Tom
Vilsack also stripped the company’s chief executive of his seat on a
board that advises the government on peanut quality standards.

David Shipman, an acting administrator at the Agriculture Department,
said, “The actions of P.C.A. indicate that the company lacks business
integrity and business honesty, which seriously and directly hinders its
ability to do business with the federal government.”

The department’s actions came on a day when senators heard testimony
from health experts and a Food and Drug Administration official, who
acknowledged that gaps in the food safety system had contributed to
delays in catching the outbreak of salmonella in peanut butter and other
products that spread to 43 states. The problem has been traced to a
peanut processing facility in Blakely, Ga.

***Dr. Stephen Sundlof, the director of food safety programs at the
F.D.A., told the Senate Agriculture Committee that the agency’s
investigation was hindered in part by the absence of laws requiring
companies to report contamination at processing facilities. Dr. Sundlof
said food makers were required to tell the agency about safety issues
only after shipping products.***

The food and drug agency and the Justice Department are conducting a
criminal investigation into whether the Peanut Corporation of America
knowingly sold contaminated products. The company has denied it acted
illegally, and as recently as Wednesday asserted that inspectors had
given the Blakely plant a “superior” rating last year.

Federal oficials on Thursday recalled thousands of food kits with peanut
butter that had been sent to aid victims of the Kentucky ice storms.

At Thursday’s hearing, Gabrielle Meunier of South Burlington, Vt., whose
7-year-old son, Christopher, had to be hospitalized after exposure to
salmonella bacteria, likened the country’s approach to food safety to “a
game of Russian roulette.”

The committee chairman, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, called on
President Obama to put “the weight of his office” behind reforming the
federal government’s system for detecting food contamination.

This week, Mr. Obama said his administration would thoroughly review the
operations of the F.D.A. and complained that the agency had been slow
responding to food safety problems.

Still, Dr. Sundlof said, “the American food supply continues to be among
the safest in the world.”

But Mr. Harkin lamented that the recall of products poisoned with
salmonella had led to safety questions about “basic items like peanut
butter.”

Mr. Harkin, who used a peanut butter sandwich and a jar of peanut butter
as props during the hearing, added, “If that’s not safe, we have to ask,
what is?”


- - -


"...absence of laws requiring companies to report contamination at
processing facilities."


Not for long, I bet.
Here here! Let's have Citizen protections again.

Change that matters...
 

On Feb 5, 11:17*pm, wrote:
Yeah, until they make a huge contribution and get a secret waiver...
Openness you know, right...snerk. I hope Pelosi fails, does that
make me a racist?

Old news. What Harry can't grasp because he only knows what he
googles, is that government interaction failed and failed miserably.
This place was regularly inspected by federal and Georgia entities.
They found minor things, and that's all. IF they had bothered to look
at the company's records, they would have found where they'd been
shipping out tainted product several times.

Change that matters...
 

On Feb 5, 11:18*pm, wrote:
On Feb 5, 11:07*pm, HK wrote:





February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

The order, which affects the Peanut Corporation of America and a
subsidiary, will remain in force for one year. Agriculture Secretary Tom
Vilsack also stripped the company’s chief executive of his seat on a
board that advises the government on peanut quality standards.

David Shipman, an acting administrator at the Agriculture Department,
said, “The actions of P.C.A. indicate that the company lacks business
integrity and business honesty, which seriously and directly hinders its
ability to do business with the federal government.”

The department’s actions came on a day when senators heard testimony
from health experts and a Food and Drug Administration official, who
acknowledged that gaps in the food safety system had contributed to
delays in catching the outbreak of salmonella in peanut butter and other
products that spread to 43 states. The problem has been traced to a
peanut processing facility in Blakely, Ga.

***Dr. Stephen Sundlof, the director of food safety programs at the
F.D.A., told the Senate Agriculture Committee that the agency’s
investigation was hindered in part by the absence of laws requiring
companies to report contamination at processing facilities. Dr. Sundlof
said food makers were required to tell the agency about safety issues
only after shipping products.***

The food and drug agency and the Justice Department are conducting a
criminal investigation into whether the Peanut Corporation of America
knowingly sold contaminated products. The company has denied it acted
illegally, and as recently as Wednesday asserted that inspectors had
given the Blakely plant a “superior” rating last year.

Federal oficials on Thursday recalled thousands of food kits with peanut
butter that had been sent to aid victims of the Kentucky ice storms.

At Thursday’s hearing, Gabrielle Meunier of South Burlington, Vt., whose
7-year-old son, Christopher, had to be hospitalized after exposure to
salmonella bacteria, likened the country’s approach to food safety to “a
game of Russian roulette.”

The committee chairman, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, called on
President Obama to put “the weight of his office” behind reforming the
federal government’s system for detecting food contamination.

This week, Mr. Obama said his administration would thoroughly review the
operations of the F.D.A. and complained that the agency had been slow
responding to food safety problems.

Still, Dr. Sundlof said, “the American food supply continues to be among
the safest in the world.”

But Mr. Harkin lamented that the recall of products poisoned with
salmonella had led to safety questions about “basic items like peanut
butter.”

Mr. Harkin, who used a peanut butter sandwich and a jar of peanut butter
as props during the hearing, added, “If that’s not safe, we have to ask,
what is?”

- - -

"...absence of laws requiring companies to report contamination at
processing facilities."

Not for long, I bet.

Too bad the Dwarf Army never got any........- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Awe, look, it's Harry's personal peter puffer!

Change that matters...
 

On Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:07:34 -0500, HK wrote:

February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

During the Great Reagan Era of Joblessness (we're hitting his
benchmarks now) I ended up running packaging machines at Cloud
Packaging in Skokie, Illinois. This was 1983.
Main reason I could score that job was that I had previously been a
packaging machine mechanic, and Cloud had landed the Nutrasweet
contract from Searle, so they needed to gear up pretty quick.
Six bucks an hour, so I was back to my 1968 wages.
But work is work, and moths must be fed.
You might recall that saccharin had become a no-no, and Searle
developed Nutrasweet. This is the place where the QC inspector
was a Reagan-fired ATC/Patco guy.
I'll take a second here to mention what a petty low down **** Reagan
was in never letting these guys go back to work in the trade they knew
and were trained for.
Retribution against defeated men, and kicking them when they're down
is as good a measure of a man's moral core as I know, and that's how I
measure Reagan.
Anyway, I packaged a lot of different items at Cloud, one being a beef
broth dry mix for the military. Nitrogen was used to eliminate oxygen
during packaging.
There was *always* an FDA inspector overlooking that packaging.
Was he needed?
I always felt it was a waste of fed money, but that's just how it was.
Seemed I was nearly always a step ahead of him in correcting something
that was off.
But maybe that's because he was there. Still not sure, but when
there's a fed inspector watching, you are probably more careful.
This peanut thing is different, since even plant cleanliness comes
into play, and there is business/gov collusion involved.
I mentioned my wife is a corporate cook, and even though she is
naturally a clean freak, company and county officials do frequent
workplace inspections.
Part of the stimulus money should go to hire Fed FDA staff to ensure
food safety.
We also need more IRS auditors, who shortly pay for themselves.
Those auditors would have saved Obama some embarrassment.

--Vic

Change that matters...
 

"Vic Smith" wrote in message
...


During the Great Reagan Era of Joblessness (we're hitting his
benchmarks now) I ended up running packaging machines at Cloud
Packaging in Skokie, Illinois. This was 1983.
Main reason I could score that job was that I had previously been a
packaging machine mechanic, and Cloud had landed the Nutrasweet
contract from Searle, so they needed to gear up pretty quick.
Six bucks an hour, so I was back to my 1968 wages.
But work is work, and moths must be fed.


You feed moths?

Must be the entomologist in you.

Eisboch

Change that matters...
 

Vic Smith wrote:
On Thu, 05 Feb 2009 23:07:34 -0500, HK wrote:

February 6, 2009
Peanut Supplier Banned From Federal Business
By MICHAEL FALCONE
NY Times

WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department on Thursday banned the company
implicated in the nationwide contamination of peanut products from doing
business with the federal government. At least eight people have died
and hundreds have been sickened after eating tainted products.

During the Great Reagan Era of Joblessness (we're hitting his
benchmarks now) I ended up running packaging machines at Cloud
Packaging in Skokie, Illinois. This was 1983.
Main reason I could score that job was that I had previously been a
packaging machine mechanic, and Cloud had landed the Nutrasweet
contract from Searle, so they needed to gear up pretty quick.
Six bucks an hour, so I was back to my 1968 wages.
But work is work, and moths must be fed.
You might recall that saccharin had become a no-no, and Searle
developed Nutrasweet. This is the place where the QC inspector
was a Reagan-fired ATC/Patco guy.
I'll take a second here to mention what a petty low down **** Reagan
was in never letting these guys go back to work in the trade they knew
and were trained for.
Retribution against defeated men, and kicking them when they're down
is as good a measure of a man's moral core as I know, and that's how I
measure Reagan.
Anyway, I packaged a lot of different items at Cloud, one being a beef
broth dry mix for the military. Nitrogen was used to eliminate oxygen
during packaging.
There was *always* an FDA inspector overlooking that packaging.
Was he needed?
I always felt it was a waste of fed money, but that's just how it was.
Seemed I was nearly always a step ahead of him in correcting something
that was off.
But maybe that's because he was there. Still not sure, but when
there's a fed inspector watching, you are probably more careful.
This peanut thing is different, since even plant cleanliness comes
into play, and there is business/gov collusion involved.
I mentioned my wife is a corporate cook, and even though she is
naturally a clean freak, company and county officials do frequent
workplace inspections.
Part of the stimulus money should go to hire Fed FDA staff to ensure
food safety.
We also need more IRS auditors, who shortly pay for themselves.
Those auditors would have saved Obama some embarrassment.

--Vic





From what I read, Georgia, like some other states, has a severe
shortaqe of inspectors and has had for some time. I wouldn't doubt the
collusion, especially in the south.

The Bush mis-administration never took federal food and drug inspections
seriously and in fact worked overtime to roll back standards and numbers
of inspectors. True also for OSHA in terms of inspectors and unannounced
inspections.

Hope this changes, but since the country is broke now...who knows.