Georgia Will Consider Charging Parnell, PCA With Manslaughter

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Fri Feb 13, 2009 at 01:35:19 AM PST

Georgia officials say they will consider charging the company and its CEO, Stewart Parnell, with manslaughter, if federal authorities do not.

First time I've heard anything about that.  Somebody had better!  How much more evidence do they need?  Manslaughter is the least Parnell should be charged with, imo...

The very next paragraph brings up another interesting question, which shouldn't even be a serious question at all -

But legal experts say the current food-contamination scandal will test the willingness of federal law enforcement officials to use handcuffs against Mr. Parnell and other allegedly rogue operators in a country with some 60,000 food-production factories.

How much more evidence is needed that this was a premeditated act?  It was a business decision on the part of Stewart Parnell and PCA to introduce food that they knew was contaminated with deadly bacteria into the food system.  Nine people have died as a direct result of that decision.  There's a word for that, and it ain't "business".

Why is it that Stewart Parnell and others like him are allowed to commit heinous crimes under the cover of the legal entity known as a corporation, and there are actually questions as to whether (or what) charges will be filed against the guy?

Was the key legal mistake of every murderer in prison right now that they failed to 'incorporate' before they killed people?

Ninth Salmonella Death Confirmed

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Thu Feb 12, 2009 at 12:08:07 PM PST

A second Ohio woman's death has been linked to peanut products from a Georgia plant now under fire for sending tainted food to manufacturers across the country.

An elderly woman from Medina County died after contracting Salmonella typhimurium, the strain of the bacteria associated with a nationwide outbreak that has prompted widespread food recalls, said Ohio Department of Health officials.

Out of the 9 deaths and over 600 reported sicknesses currently linked to this outbreak, 2 deaths and at least 90 sicknesses have so far been confirmed in Ohio.  Ohio leads the nation in confirmed cases.

In other peanut news today - for the families of PCA's victims, file this one under too little, too late -

The Senate Agriculture Committee unanimously approved a plan that would require food makers to alert state inspectors within 24 hours if a plant's internal tests show its products are contaminated.

[...]

"If this bill had been in place six months ago, a red flag would have been raised," said Republican state Sen. John Bulloch, the committee chairman and the measure's sponsor. "I think we could have identified this plant had a problem."

Food safety experts, government groups and industry lobbies say they don't know of any other state that requires food manufacturers to share internal data.

What have these 'regulators' been 'regulating' all along, anyway?

Tweeting the Peanut Butter Hearings

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Feb 11, 2009 at 11:10:27 AM PST

Internal Emails: PCA President "Urged Shipping" Poison Peanuts

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Wed Feb 11, 2009 at 08:28:13 AM PST

WASHINGTON (AP) - The owner of a peanut company urged his workers to ship tainted products after receiving test results identifying salmonella, according to internal company e-mails disclosed Wednesday by a House committee.

The company e-mails obtained by the House panel showed that Peanut Corp. of America owner Stewart Parnell ordered the shipments tainted with the bacteria because he was worried about lost sales.

Lost sales, or lost lives?

This news comes from internal company emails obtained by the House Committee before which Stewart Parnell was subpoenaed to appear.

Is there any question now that this man should spend the rest of his life in prison?

Deja Vu: PCA Texas Peanut Plant "Disgusting", "Leaky Roof Peppered With Bird Poop"

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Wed Feb 11, 2009 at 04:59:45 AM PST

After yesterday's news of a new salmonella find at PCA's Texas plant, the New York Times follows up this morning with more on conditions at that plant -

Kenneth Kendrick, a former assistant plant manager of the Texas facility, said in an interview that the plant had a leaky roof, rodent infestation and poor process controls. A second former employee of the Texas plant, who asked for anonymity because of legal concerns, confirmed Mr. Kendrick's descriptions of the plant and its processes. Mr. Kendrick left the plant about two years ago.

"This was a disgusting plant," Mr. Kendrick said. "We cut corners."

The plant always had standing water in its basement, Mr. Kendrick said. The roof leaked so badly that when it rained, workers were instructed to raise tarps to the ceiling to direct the water away from peanuts and plant equipment, the two said. Rain at night went unattended, they said.

Sound familiar?

Peanut Corporation of America is a criminal enterprise, a repeated pattern of unconscionable behavior has clearly been established in the way they run their business.  It's time to stop playing footsy with those who kill and sicken people through poisoned food.  This outbreak was not a 'mistake' or an 'accident'.  It was a business decision on the part of PCA's executives to run their organization in this manner.  Long prison sentences are called for here, and this company needs to be shut down now and forever.  

In a perfect world?  We'd see Stewart Parnell and other top PCA executives prosecuted under the RICO statutes, and we'd see the company and those executives stripped of all their assets to compensate their victims.

I won't be holding my breath on that, though.  We'll see what happens...

Breaking: Salmonella Found In PCA Texas Plant, New Recalls Issued

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Tue Feb 10, 2009 at 13:17:14 PM PST

Peanut Corporation of America shuttered its Plainview, Texas plant last night at the request of state health officials, said Doug McBride, a spokesman for the Texas Department of State Health Services. The action came after laboratory results from samples taken on Feb. 4 of roasted peanuts, peanut meal and granulated peanuts were positive for salmonella.

It appears the shutdown wasn't for charitable reasons after all, eh?

Wow, this is from the Texas plant that was previously said to have no contamination present -

The bacteria were discovered before the affected granulated peanuts and peanut meal had left the Texas plant but after contaminated roasted peanuts had been shipped out of state, McBride said. Company officials notified the distributor last night and recalled the roasted peanuts, he said.

During all this, they were still shipping salmonella contaminated peanuts!

PCA 'Voluntarily Suspends Operations' at Unlicensed, Uninspected TX Plant

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Tue Feb 10, 2009 at 08:12:38 AM PST

ATLANTA (AP) - The company at the center of an investigation into a deadly national salmonella outbreak has suspended operations at a second peanut processing plant.

Peanut Corporation of America said in a statement Tuesday it is voluntarily suspending operations at its Plainview, Texas, plant while state and federal health officials complete an investigation into procedures and food safety records there.

PCA was still shipping food products all this time?  From an uninspected and unlicensed plant?  And btw - which companies and institutions were still buying from PCA?

This Texas plant operated uninspected and unlicensed since at least 2005.  This was discovered by federal and state agencies over a week ago, and it was still operating until today?  And it only 'suspended operations' by choice?  I honestly don't know what else to add here...

Can we see that Change soon (like, now...), please?

Peanut Update

by: Jill Richardson

Mon Feb 09, 2009 at 16:03:29 PM PST

• Despite previous statements to the contrary, PCA did sell food directly to retailers - specifically, to Dollar Tree Stores, Dollar General, 99 Cent Stuff, and 99 Cent Only stores.

• The recall continues to grow. One article said 1790 products have now been recalled. Amazing that anyone who buys from PCA has been sitting on the information all this time and only just announced a recall yet but apparently some companies have done that. They've got some 'splaining to do if you ask me.

• Schools in three states received possibly tainted peanuts as part of a free lunch program. Add that to FEMA giving out tainted peanuts and the military using tainted peanuts in ready to eat meals and it seems pretty clear that the government doesn't really test the food it buys for safety before distributing it. If it's a silver lining, PCA is not allowed to do business with the government for a year - maybe more.

• The peanut recall is hitting retailers hard. Peanut butter sales are down 25 percent. ConAgra and Smuckers (makes of Peter Pan and Jif, respectively) are each running ads and offering coupons, promising consumers their peanut butter is safe.

• Strangely enough peanut prices are up [PDF]. According to the USDA, peanut prices averaged 24.7 cents per pound for the week ending January 31 - up 1.1 cents from the previous week. I find it odd that in the midst of this salmonella outbreak, peanut prices are just about as high as they've ever been in the past two years.

• The AP offers a peanut butter salmonella timeline. This story has gotten so twisted at this point that I think we need a timeline. Thanks, AP!

• Obama Foodorama reports that Rahm Emmanuel is living in Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)'s basement. Why is this significant? Because she just introduced a food safety bill and he's Obama's Chief of Staff. Can Rahm help DeLauro get her bill passed?

• DeLauro's bill may be coming at the right time, as Eating Liberally says FDA stands for Failure to Do Anything.

• Georgia's state senate is reconsidering its food safety laws. Hmm, ya think???

• The FDA's investigation of the Blakely, GA peanut plant that caused this whole mess is so crazy that the FBI is helping them out. The New York Times offers an article about the FDA's findings at the peanut plant - in case you missed all the previous headlines about leaky roofs and baby mice inside bags of peanuts.

• Over at Civil Eats, a physician urges locavorism as a smart food safety move.

• Newspapers around the country are running op eds about the need for improvement in our food safety system. Here are a few:
  
  • The Baltimore Sun urges tougher regulation (hooray!).
  • The Arizona Republic has also come out in favor of safe food.
  • Mercury News thinks Obama should put all of food safety under one roof. Yess!!! I agree!!!
  • The Miami Herald thinks tainted peanuts violate the public trust.

It's wonderful to see food safety getting the attention it deserves and utterly tragic that people had to die to make that happen.

"Cancer Couldn't Claim Her, but Peanut Butter Did"

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Fri Feb 06, 2009 at 21:50:41 PM PST

Cancer couldn't claim her, but peanut butter did. Now that we understood the cause of her death, our grief was replaced by anger as we struggled to accept this very preventable tragedy. Our family feels cheated. My mom should be with us today.

Shirley Almer had beaten cancer twice over the previous year and a half.  I honestly don't even know what I can add here.  

Totally preventable tragedy, and the executives responsible at PCA must pay for their criminal actions that have directly led to eight deaths and hundreds of reported sicknesses, along with who-knows-how-many others that we'll never know of.

Other peanut butter news from today:

• FDA today 'amended' their initial report, and now says that PCA shipped some salmonella contaminated products without even bothering to get a second 'negative' test result.
• Peanut butter sales are down 25% nationwide, other manufacturers not involved in the recall are resorting to ads and coupons to get customers back.
• Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has come out in favor of a single food safety agency.

FEMA Distributes Recalled Peanut Butter to Storm Victims

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Thu Feb 05, 2009 at 21:06:44 PM PST

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Officials on Thursday warned victims of last week's ice storm not to eat peanut butter packets from emergency meal kits distributed by the federal government because they had been recalled for possible salmonella contamination.

The kits were shipped to Arkansas and Kentucky to help feed some of the 1.3 million people left without power for days at the height of the storm. No illnesses have been reported and recalls were ordered out of "an abundance of caution," said Jay Blanton, a spokesman for Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear.

Also, in other peanut butter news today:

• Kellogg's audits in 2007 and 2008 gave PCA's Blakely, Ga. plant an overall superior rating
• US Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) calls for jail time for food producers responsible for widespread, deadly outbreaks of disease
• PCA President Stewart Parnell has been stripped of his seat on the government peanut quality standards advisory board
• PCA has been banned from doing business with the federal government, but only for one year as of right now

FDA To Killers: May We Take Action?

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Mon Feb 02, 2009 at 22:00:03 PM PST

That probably doesn't come as a surprise to many of us here, but I couldn't let this article slip by without comment -

Even though federal health officials have begun a criminal investigation into whether the Peanut Corporation of America deliberately sold contaminated products, the government still needed the company's permission last week before announcing a huge recall of its products.

The wording of the recall statement had to be approved by the company before the Food and Drug Administration could publish it under current rules. The agency relies on cooperation from food makers to ensure the safety of the food supply even when those makers are suspected of crimes.

Now this takes us on to the corporate personhood debate.  Regardless of where anyone stands on this issue, which goes back to a misinterpreted Supreme Court case from the 19th Century; I don't think anybody can present an honest case that things on this front don't need to change, and change now.  Not only are corporations currently afforded rights as living beings that they don't deserve, but they're also given rights by law way above and beyond that which any actual citizen enjoys.

I don't recall the last time that an individual who killed at least 8 people and sickened thousands was asked for permission by the authorities to publicize his crimes, let alone having the right of said authorities being required to ask permission from that person before they would be allowed to take action that would prevent further harm from being done to the population at risk.  Which in this case, would of course be any American who shops for food at mainstream grocery stores...

Recalled Peanut Products: Updated List

by: Jill Richardson

Mon Feb 02, 2009 at 15:03:27 PM PST

Here's the latest peanut butter/food safety news:

• Bill Marler has Rep. Dingell's bill to improve food safety and plans to read ALL of it. I look forward to hearing his thoughts on it from a lawyer's point of view.
• Barack Obama told Matt Lauer that "At bare minimum, we should be able to count on our government keeping our kids safe when they eat peanut butter." In the interview, Obama promised a complete review of FDA operations. Yes, we can!

Ga. Peanut Company Advised USDA on "Quality Standards"

by: Jill Richardson

Sat Jan 31, 2009 at 17:26:12 PM PST

The president of the peanut company linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak serves on an industry advisory board that helps the U.S. Department of Agriculture set quality standards for peanuts. Stewart Parnell, president of Peanut Corp. of America, based in Lynchburg, Va., was first appointed to the USDA's Peanut Standards Board in July 2005 and was reappointed in October for a second term that runs until June 2011....

I agree with Marler: What kind of "quality" advise was Mr. Parnell giving to the USDA? Perhaps recommending we fortify peanuts with extra iron in the form of metal fragments? Let's hope that the Obama admin has a little talk with Mr. Parnell and encourages him to step down and spend more time with his family. Especially since the plant is now under criminal investigation and Mr. Parnell might wind up in a location where he won't be able to see his family too much anymore (or is that just me being hopeful?).

Meanwhile, Obama's press secretary Robert Gibbs gives us his comments on food safety. Continued...

Peanut Butter Updates: Metal Fragments in PB and a Criminal Investigation

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Jan 30, 2009 at 23:52:36 PM PST

Another bit of news: Peanut Corporation of America (PCA), the company that caused the problem, is now under a federal criminal investigation. If you're wondering what they are facing from a legal perspective, Bill Marler provides an explanation of food safety laws on his blog. And, buried in that story is a major bombshell:

The FDA also said for the first time that some peanut butter on store shelves may not be safe to eat. Health officials repeated assurances that major national brands were considered safe, but said some boutique brands may be suspect.

That's major - up til now we were told that jars of peanut butter are all OK and now they might not be. The FDA site is still the place to go for updates of recalled products but I also recommend checking out the corporate sites of any peanut products you may have because often it takes up to a day for the FDA to update its list with new recalls. If you're in doubt about any foods right now, don't eat them. Just hang on to them for now, and wait to see if they will be recalled. I've posted the new ice creams recalled below since that's the major category that has grown in the last 24 hours.

Peanut Butter Spurs John Dingell To Action

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Jan 30, 2009 at 06:00:00 AM PST

In response to the Peanut Butter contamination, the House of Representatives jumped in to action yesterday, and introduced a new Bill that amps up frequency and scope of FDA inspections, but requires Industry to cover the costs.

The Food and Drug Adminsitration Globzlization Act [sic], introduced By Congressman John Dingell (D-MI), and lauded by Democrats on the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee - would require food companies to be inspected at least once every four years, and drug companies at least every two. Inspections once every four years? That'll solve food and drug safety problems!

Hmm... I detect some sarcasm there. The plant that caused the salmonella outbreak was inspected twice in the last decade - in 2001 and in 2006. Once every 4 years is better than that, at least. So far this bill has 2 cosponsors and it has been referred to the committee on Energy and Commerce. Independent of this bill, the committee will also hold oversight hearings on the salmonella outbreak in February.

Peanut butter recall update below.