Government food safety scientists report political, corporate interference

[TalkingDog]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-scientists-obama-20100914,0,4245034.story

Scientists and inspectors at the federal agencies responsible for food safety say they face political and corporate interference with their work, according to a survey released Monday by the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonpartisan advocate for unbiased science in government.

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Almost half of those surveyed said that in the last year they had experienced "situations where corporate interests have forced the withdrawal or significant modification of policy or action designed to protect consumers or public health."

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Fifty-four percent said the agencies gave political interests too much weight in their decision-making.

"Typically, once a member of Congress gets involved, the agency does whatever it can to make the situation go away rather than address food safety issues," one USDA employee wrote in an anonymous essay that accompanied the survey questionnaire.

[TalkingDog]

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[mrs_p]

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[snagglepuss]

3. K & R nt