The Public’s Health

Rena Steinzor

doi:10.1017/CBO9781107282087.009

Chapter 6 - The Public’s Health

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 December 2014

Rena Steinzor

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Rena Steinzor: Affiliation:
University of Maryland, Baltimore

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The Peanut Corporation of America

I think that the F.D.A. has not been able to catch some of these things as quickly as I expect. … At bare minimum, we should be able to count on our government keeping our kids safe when they eat peanut butter. That’s what Sasha eats for lunch probably three times a week. And, you know, I don’t want to have to worry about whether she’s going to get sick as a consequence of having her lunch.

President Obama

If someone is convicted of a felony in the criminal justice system, they go to prison and are not allowed to vote. But, if you poison Americans via their food supply what are the consequences? You pay a fine and keep producing? Is this right? Is this what we as Americans want?

Peter Hurley, police officer, Portland, Oregon and father of surviving salmonella-poisoned child

Team Diarrhea’s Discovery

In the fall of 2008, Minnesota public health officials were alarmed by an unusually high number of illnesses and deaths caused by salmonella poisoning. This outbreak of foodborne disease, one of the largest in history, ultimately resulted in the deaths of 9 people and sickened 714. Twenty-three percent of those made ill were hospitalized and half of the ill were young children. Medical experts who have studied the incident say that even these high numbers likely underestimate the outbreak’s impact because salmonellosis remains a significantly underreported disease. They say that the number of illnesses and deaths could be as much as 16 times more than reported.

Type: Chapter
Information: Why Not Jail?
Industrial Catastrophes, Corporate Malfeasance, and Government Inaction
, pp. 183 - 216

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107282087.009 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2014

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References

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Chapter 6 - The Public’s Health

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