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...deaths, three miscarriages and dozens of hospitalizations--was traced to tainted turkey from a processor near Philadelphia. Veneman came up with a blueprint directing federal inspectors to hunt down Listeria on the equipment, surfaces and drains of every major producer of ready-to-eat meat and poultry. (Though the USDA selectively inspected processed meat for Listeria, it had left testing of plant interiors, where the bacteria can breed, to the companies.) The National Food Processors Association (N.F.P.A.), voice of the $500 billion industry and a major Republican donor, called Veneman's plan "very onerous" and predicted that universal government testing...
...final directive, issued to little notice on Dec. 6, made the industry a lot happier. The USDA will limit its plant testing to those that make the riskiest products and to plants that do not do their own testing or don't share their results with the USDA. The final version dropped plans to fine companies where Listeria was discovered. The changes outraged consumer advocates, who claim the USDA is compromising safety to satisfy industry. The N.F.P.A. gloated in a Nov. 11 members-only newsletter obtained by TIME that "a number of key [USDA] personnel have bought into much...
...report to Congress last spring, the GAO detailed a "patchwork structure" of school-food--safety regulations encumbered by red tape. The Food and Drug Administration and three separate agencies within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) share authority over school lunches. Yet none has the power to recall tainted foods. The ineptness of this bureaucracy was on display last month after 1.8 million lbs. of Wampler Foods turkey meat linked to listeria were distributed to schools as part of the National School Lunch Program. It took five days for officials to tell the Cumberland Valley School District in Mechanicsburg...
...this year the USDA intends to announce a plan allowing schools to purchase meat that has been irradiated. The process, which involves blasting meat with low-level radiation to kill bacteria like listeria, has its opponents, who claim it also kills nutrients. But serving meats spoiled during processing are only part of the food-borne--illness problem. The much more common causes are poor preparation in the cafeteria and poor hygiene among children, who often forget to wash their hands before picking at the salad bar. Many districts are following the lead of New Orleans, which after the Turkey...
...National School Lunch Program was born of good intentions. In 1946, after World War II draft boards rejected legions of feeble, underfed men, the government began reimbursing schools for lunches, allowing the poorest students to dine for free. The USDA monitors the program, ensuring schools meet certain calorie and nutrition standards...