Discovering Innovative Solutions To the Most Pressing Health Concerns Facing The World
11.09.15
A colleague, Aliza Glasner, recently asked a fundamental question about the move towards food labeling that not only tells you about what nutrients are in the food, but also provide warnings about unhealthy food: What is healthy food? What is unhealthy food? That got me thinking. What about people for whom “healthy” is not the […]
10.27.15
Yesterday, the World Health Organization (WHO) made waves with meat-eaters around the world by classifying processed meat as carcinogenic, and red meat as probably carcinogenic: Processed Meat: Processed meat was classified as carcinogenic to humans based on sufficient evidence in humans that the consumption of processed meat causes colorectal cancer. Red meat: After thoroughly reviewing […]
10.21.15
This morning, at the New York Time’s Food for Tomorrow conference, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree of Maine announced a new bill aimed at tackling food waste. She explained that in the US, 40% of all food is wasted, which averages about 20 pounds per person. At the same time, 50 million Americans do not have access […]
10.07.15
Today, four of America’s preeminent voices in food policy published A National Food Policy for the 21st Century. In their memo to the next president, Mark Bittman, Michael Pollan, Ricardo Salvador, and Olivier De Schutter laid out a comprehensive framework for untangling the myriad laws, regulations, and social mores that make up America’s troubled food […]
09.25.15
It’s been a rough week for bad executives. Volkwagen’s CEO, Martin Winterkorn, resigned after investigators discovered that the carmaker had installed software that allowed its vehicles to pass emissions tests, while during normal operation they spewed out pollutants far beyond legal limits. Another executive received a 28-year prison sentence for deliberately shipping tainted peanut butter […]
09.22.15
Today, food safety advocates are cheering the unprecedented magnitude of judicial sentences delivered against two company executives (who also happen to be brothers) who knowingly sent peanut butter tainted with salmonella into interstate commerce. A federal judge in Georgia sentenced one brother to 28 years in jail and the other to 20 years (a plant manager also […]
08.13.15
In the late 1950s, a new over-the-counter sedative, thalidomide was introduced in Germany. At the time, it was the only non-barbiturate sedative on the market and it was marketed as an extraordinarily safe sleeping aid. The drug company “advertised their product as ‘completely safe’ for everyone, including mother and child, ‘even during pregnancy,’ as its […]
08.10.15
Last semester I taught a course on public health law. There was hardly an issue we covered that did not have an astute The Daily Show with Jon Stewart segment to help the students understand not just the health issue, but also its underlying political and legal conditions. Many of the clips are captured here […]
06.11.15
What if I told you that while one government agency is tasked with reducing the prevalence of smoking in the US, another is making decisions that aim to keep cigarettes cheap and accessible? Well, this bizarre outcome is exactly what happens when antitrust law is rigidly applied to the tobacco industry. This week, with approval […]
05.14.15
I recently read an article in Forbes that asked, “Are [foodborne] outbreaks actually increasing, or are we just more aware of them?” I work in food safety. I often feel panicked before I feed my children. But I thought that might just be a hazard of working in this field. So, are foodborne outbreaks actually […]
Signup for our mailing list and stay up to date on the latest happenings at The O’Neill Institute
Or sign up for our RSS Feed
The views reflected in this expert column are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law or Georgetown University. This blog is solely informational in nature, and not intended as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed and retained attorney in your state or country.
See the full disclaimer and terms of use.