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Big Tobacco Suffers Big Setbacks in DC

Despite massive lobbying, regulation looks likely to pass

(Newser) - After years of winning its fights in Washington, Big Tobacco is steeling itself for a major defeat: Not only did Congress pass an excise tax hike of 62 cents a pack of cigarettes, which went into effect this week, but the House voted overwhelmingly to submit the industry to FDA...

Obama's FDA Cracks Down on Food Industry

Sweeping pistachio recall rejects slow pace of peanut crisis

(Newser) - Under President Obama, the Food and Drug Administration is taking on a tougher, more preventative role, the New York Times reports, leading, for example, to product recalls before anyone’s been sickened. The change is evident in the agency’s handling of the pistachio scare: It warned against eating them...

Pistachio Co.: Kraft Knew About Salmonella Last Year

(Newser) - Kraft Foods detected salmonella in a California nut company's product over 6 months ago but didn't notify the firm until last week, a rep for the parent company said today. Roasted nuts from Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella, Inc., the company at the heart of the nationwide pistachio recall, failed...

Salmonella Triggers Pistachio Recall

Huge pistachio recall issued after salmonella found at processor

(Newser) - Consumers have been warned to steer clear of pistachios and any product containing them until the FDA probes the extent of salmonella contamination, reports WebMD. A million pounds of possibly tainted pistachios from a California processor have been recalled and authorities expect that more recalls will follow. Affected products range...

American Salt Intake Is 2X Too High

(Newser) - Most Americans eat way too much salt, and people with salt-sensitive medical conditions consume twice as much as they should, Scientific American reports. The American average is 3,456 milligrams per day. The FDA guideline for someone not at risk is 2,300 milligrams, or one teaspoon. For older people,...

FDA Ordered to Relax Age Rules on Morning-After Pill

(Newser) - A federal judge today ordered the Food and Drug Administration to immediately relax age restrictions on the morning-after contraception pill, and reconsider whether there should be any restrictions at all, the Washington Post reports. Since 2005, the pill has been available without a prescription only to women over 18; within...

FDA OKs Drug for Kids Despite Justice Probe

Firm wooed docs to illegally prescribe antidepressant: feds

(Newser) - The FDA has approved an antidepressant called Lexapro for kids, just weeks after the Justice Department accused its maker of marketing it illegally—for kids. Prosecutors say Forest Laboratories for years sweet-talked pediatricians into prescribing Lexapro and the similar Celexa by offering spa visits, event tickets, and fishing trips, even...

Obama Promises Food-Safety Overhaul

Cites 'public health hazard,' names FDA picks

(Newser) - President Obama announced a food-safety overhaul in his weekly radio address today, describing a new panel that will review the issue and naming his choices for FDA heads, the New York Times reports. “In the end, food safety is something I take seriously, not just as your president, but...

Baby Bath Products Have Carcinogens, Group Says

(Newser) - Common baby shampoos and lotions contain trace amounts of two carcinogens, a public safety group says. Big-name products such as Johnson & Johnson shampoo and Baby Magic lotion tested positive for the cancer-causing chemicals, apparently produced as byproducts during the manufacturing process, reports the Washington Post. Johnson & ...

Ex-NYC Health Chief Picked to Head FDA

Bioterror expert tapped for tough task of reforming agency

(Newser) - Bioterror expert and former New York City health commissioner Margaret Hamburg has been picked to head the FDA, insiders tell the Washington Post. Hamburg—who still must be confirmed by Congress—will be taking charge of an agency shaken by a series of high-profile failures that many lawmakers say is...

Food Hazards Elude Private Inspectors

Food poisoning outbreaks traced back to dangers cut-price auditors missed

(Newser) - The job of monitoring America's food plants is falling more and more to private inspectors who often miss hazards, a New York Times investigation finds. Plants hire such auditors to reassure customers and reduce liability, but the companies often pick the cheapest and least rigorous audits available. Some of the...

Pay for Soup, Enjoy Insects, Mold Free
Pay for Soup, Enjoy Insects, Mold Free
OPINION
Feb 13, 2009 1:33 PM CST

Pay for Soup, Enjoy Insects, Mold Free

FDA's classification of food 'defects' a slippery slope

(Newser) - If you're eating, stop reading now: The FDA's rules on foreign matter in food products are a veritable entomology lesson. Maggots, fly eggs, rodent droppings, grit, mold, burlap, cigarette butts, and parasites are all OK with the agency in limited quantities, writes EJ Levy in the New York Times, adding,...

FDA Slaps Birth Control Giant Over Deceptive Ads

Bayer ordered to air clarifying spots for Yaz

(Newser) - Bayer Pharmaceuticals has just launched a $20 million ad campaign for Yaz, the country's most widely used birth control pill. But the ads aren't promoting the drug; rather, they're clarifying earlier commercials that seemed to say Yaz prevented acne and mood swings. As the New York Times reports, the FDA ...

Salmonella Outbreak Bares Lethal Flaws in Oversight

Preplanned inspections, loose oversight kept company in business

(Newser) - Angry salmonella victims and their families are asking how the government missed the Peanut Corporation of America's flagrant health violations that killed eight people, reports the New York Times. The company and government inspectors overlooked rodents, leaky roofs and lukewarm roasters, while minimum-wage temporary workers paid little attention to health...

Feds Start Criminal Probe Into Salmonella Outbreak

FDA, Justice Dept. team up for investigation of Georgia peanut plant

(Newser) - The federal government has begun a criminal investigation into the peanut-driven salmonella outbreak, after it was revealed that a supplier shipped product that initially tested positive for the bacteria, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The House has called representatives from two testing labs, which certified negative results, to testify. Peanut Corp....

Canada Rejected Plant's Tainted Peanuts

Firm tried to export unsuitable food weeks before current salmonella outbreak

(Newser) - Weeks before the earliest signs of a national salmonella outbreak that now has been traced to peanuts from a Georgia processing plant, peanuts exported by the same company were found to be contaminated and were returned to the United States. The rejected shipment—coming over the US border across a...

Feds Order Massive Recall of All Peanut Plant Foods

Record recall aimed at stemming deadly salmonella outbreak

(Newser) - The FDA has ordered a massive recall of every single product from ice cream to snack crackers and dog biscuits made over the last two years with peanuts processed at the Peanut Corporation of America plant in Georgia. The recall, aimed at stemming a deadly outbreak of salmonella, is one...

FDA OKs Pioneering Stem Cell Trial
FDA OKs Pioneering
Stem Cell Trial
Jan 23, 2009 3:00 AM CST

FDA OKs Pioneering Stem Cell Trial

First-ever test of therapy on spinal cord injuries hailed as milestone

(Newser) - The FDA has approved the world's first-ever human trial of a medical treatment using embryonic stem cells, the New York Times reports. The move is being hailed as a watershed moment for medical research. Biotech company Geron plans to inject the cells—which can turn into any type of cell...

Don't Eat Peanut Butter Products, FDA Warns

(Newser) - Federal health authorities today urged consumers to avoid eating cookies, cakes, ice cream, and other foods that contain peanut butter until authorities can learn more about a deadly outbreak of salmonella contamination. Most peanut butter sold in jars at supermarkets appears to be safe. More than 470 people have gotten...

Peanut Butter Recalled in Salmonella Scare

Common hospital, school brand may have sickened 400 Americans

(Newser) - A peanut butter brand distributed exclusively to food services—including those at schools and hospitals—may be the culprit in the latest salmonella outbreak, which has sickened 400 Americans in 42 states. The Peanut Corp. of America has recalled King Nut and Parnell's Pride peanut butters after the contaminant was...

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