“This is yet another example of the failure of FDA management to understand that its sole purpose for existence is to protect the American people from unsafe food, drugs and medical devices,” said Rep. John Dingell. “These back-scratching bonuses could be used to hire inspectors that might have gone to China and uncovered the unsafe manufacturing practices that led to the heparin deaths, or the tomato packers that shipped salmonella to hundreds of Americans,” the Michigan Democrat said.

With any luck, we may be close to the end of the seemingly endless reports on where the toxic tomatoes have done their latest damage. Late today, the CDC reported that the number of confirmed cases of salmonella saintpaul rose to 707, spread over 34 states. And, among the latest additions to the sick list were four new cases identified in Washington State.

I don’t mind doing controversial stories. Usually it’s an opportunity to meet new people and plow new ground that the multitude of smarter reporters avoid at all cost. In chasing topics like this, you know the end result will spark lots of feedback.
So, yes, I’ve had lots of company since Monday when the P-I ran [...]

After almost three years of stalling, questionable court rulings and a flood of appeals, it looks like the criminal trial of W.R. Grace and six of its top executives may actually happen.
The Supreme Court this morning rejected two appeals by Grace and its executives stemming from February 2005 indictments alleging, among many other charges, that [...]

The CDC reported last night that outbreaks of the saintpaul strain of salmonella has been documented in 28 states, with 277 people sick and 43 of those hospitalized. And here is a fascinating number released by the federal disease detectives: More than 8,000 people may have actually been sickened in this outbreak, but no one will ever know for sure. “Most cases of salmonellosis are not reported because some people who are ill do not seek medical attention and not all patients who seek medical care submit specimens for culturing,” said a CDC spokesperson.

The flooding in the Midwestern U.S. is destroying millions of acres of corn and soybeans — 3 million in Iowa alone — and this is likely to lead to severe shortages in feed for livestock and biofuel. But a bit more than 8,000 miles into the Pacific, New Zealanders are offering up one of [...]

The images on TV are dramatic and painful to watch, with houses piling up behind bridges as flood waters continue to rampage through much of the Midwest. Ag experts anticipate massive distruction to the nation’s corn supply as well as concerns about the area’s huge livestock operations.

The Food and Drug Administration has always been one of my favorite targets for critical examination of its actions, because what it does or doesn’t do can result in lives destroyed. Now, the agency is clearly caught between a tomato and a hard place. Angry state agriculture officials are demanding FDA announcements that the salmonella-contaminated [...]

As you may have seen from this morning’s story in the newsprint version of the P-I, the FDA continues to add to the list of places where Salmonella-tainted tomatoes that have sickened people across the country didn’t come from. It may be tomorrow afternoon when we get the first clue of what our federal food [...]

Pray for sun so your tomatoes start showing up on your home vines . The Food and Drug Administration has expanded its warning to consumers nationwide that a there has been an outbreak of a rare type of salmonellosis linked to consumption of certain raw, red tomatoes.
Our federal food guardians are advising consumers to [...]