Tainted Melons Bring Harsh Penalties for Colorado Farmers
Scientific American reports that last week two brothers plead guilty to federal criminal charges related to the United States’s worst foodborne illness outbreak in the past 25 years. The unusual charges indicate that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is gearing up for an era of tighter food safety regulations and more serious consequences.
The Colorado farmers, Eric and Ryan Jensen, were charged with counts of introducing adulterated food to interstate commerce. They face penalties that could include up to six years in jail and $1.5 million in fines. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for late January 2014. The brothers are the former owners of Jensen Farms, which sold cantaloupes contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes in 2011. The melons killed 33 people and sickened 147 in 28 states. The outbreak began when seven cases of listeriosis—food poisoning caused by L. monocytogenes—hit Colorado hospitals in late August 2011. Typically, the state would have seen one or two cases in the entire month.
Follow the link to read the full report
The Colorado farmers, Eric and Ryan Jensen, were charged with counts of introducing adulterated food to interstate commerce. They face penalties that could include up to six years in jail and $1.5 million in fines. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for late January 2014. The brothers are the former owners of Jensen Farms, which sold cantaloupes contaminated with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes in 2011. The melons killed 33 people and sickened 147 in 28 states. The outbreak began when seven cases of listeriosis—food poisoning caused by L. monocytogenes—hit Colorado hospitals in late August 2011. Typically, the state would have seen one or two cases in the entire month.
Follow the link to read the full report
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