Since June, at least 1,200 Americans have been diagnosed with salmonella poisoning.
Early on, the Food and Drug Administration believed that the culprit was tainted tomatoes. It spent weeks trying to locate the source and failed to turn up any definitive evidence. Officials announced last week that tomatoes are safe to eat.
The agency now suspects that another kind of produce — perhaps Mexican-grown jalapeño peppers handled by a small Texas produce shipper — may have caused the outbreak.
But things could be worse. Imagine if the contaminated goods weren’t produce but instead prescription drugs, coming in from all over the world.
Sound far-fetched? It’s more likely than you might think.
Here’s the rest of the story in today’s edition of the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram:
Ft. Worth Star-Telegram Op-Ed
As the FDA struggles to find the source of contaminated produce, Congress should take time to reconsider the problems with legalizing prescription drug importation.
If it doesn’t, the results could be much worse than food poisoning.
Early on, the Food and Drug Administration believed that the culprit was tainted tomatoes. It spent weeks trying to locate the source and failed to turn up any definitive evidence. Officials announced last week that tomatoes are safe to eat.
The agency now suspects that another kind of produce — perhaps Mexican-grown jalapeño peppers handled by a small Texas produce shipper — may have caused the outbreak.
But things could be worse. Imagine if the contaminated goods weren’t produce but instead prescription drugs, coming in from all over the world.
Sound far-fetched? It’s more likely than you might think.
Here’s the rest of the story in today’s edition of the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram:
Ft. Worth Star-Telegram Op-Ed
As the FDA struggles to find the source of contaminated produce, Congress should take time to reconsider the problems with legalizing prescription drug importation.
If it doesn’t, the results could be much worse than food poisoning.
