JOINT EPA/FDA STATEMENT: Update on Ongoing Monitoring

JOINT EPA/FDA STATEMENT: Update on Ongoing Monitoring

In response to the ongoing situation in Japan, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken steps to increase the level of nationwide monitoring of milk, precipitation, drinking water, and other potential exposure routes.

EPA conducts radiological monitoring of milk under its RADNET program, while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has jurisdiction over the safety, labeling and identity of milk and milk products in interstate commerce. States have jurisdiction over those facilities located within their territory.

Results from a screening sample taken March 25 from Spokane, WA detected 0.8 pCi/L of iodine-131, which is more than 5,000 times lower than the Derived Intervention Level set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. These types of findings are to be expected in the coming days and are far below levels of public health concern, including for infants and children. Iodine-131 has a very short half-life of approximately eight days, and the level detected in milk and milk products is therefore expected to drop relatively quickly.

“Radiation is all around us in our daily lives, and these findings are a miniscule amount compared to what people experience every day. For example, a person would be exposed to low levels of radiation on a round trip cross country flight, watching television, and even from construction materials,” said Patricia Hansen, an FDA senior scientist.

EPA’s recommendation to state and local governments is to continue to coordinate closely with EPA, FDA and CDC – EPA will continue to communicate our nationwide sampling results as they come in.

For more information:

EPA: www.epa.gov/japan2011

FDA: http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm247403.htm

World record attempt for longest BLT planned

ASSOCIATED WHOLESALE GROCERS (AWG) TEAM UP WITH FARMLAND, GONNELLA, RED SUN GREENHOUSE TOMATOES AND
DOLE FRESH TO TAKE ON THE WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST “BLT” SANDWICH ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27TH, 2011.

March 30th, 2011 – Kansas City, MO 169 Feet, that’s the current world record for the longest “BLT” sandwich, as documented by the World Records Academy based in Miami, Florida. Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) announced today that they will be challenging this record by creating a 200 foot long “Bacon Lettuce & Tomato” sandwich which will be hand crafted at their annual Spring Food Show on April 27th, 2011 in Kansas City.

This is not going to be just any old BLT sandwich, AWG knows and demands the highest of quality items for all of their member grocery stores and they have hand selected their ingredient partners to join them in this record breaking attempt. Teaming up with the master bakers at Gonnella for bread, Farmland Foods for the “B” in bacon, Dole Fresh for the “L” in lettuce and Red Sun Greenhouse tomatoes for the “T” in tomato, this BLT is ready to break the record not just in length...but surely will break the record in taste – if there was a record for taste!

What’s the recipe for this bold attempt? Take 200 feet of fresh Gonnella bread, slice in half length wise. Take slices of Farmland’s savory Bacon and cover the bottom layer of bread. Slice up some Red Sun greenhouse tomatoes and place on top of the bacon, then, pile on Dole’s fresh lettuce and sandwich it all together with another slice of bread on top! AWG will be accepting donations benefiting Muscular Dystrophy Association, for those attendees who want have a piece of the 200 foot masterpiece. Seems like a recipe for success, taking a bite out of history while contributing to a great cause.

Photos and video feed will be made available to the public via www.awginc.com . The world record will be posted, once officiated, on www.worldrecordsacademy.org

National Restaurant Association Member Tells Congress of Real Impact of New Health Care Law on Business

National Restaurant Association Member Tells Congress of Real Impact of New Health Care Law on Business

(Washington, D.C.) A Michigan restaurateur and National Restaurant Association member today gave the Subcommittee on Health of the House Energy & Commerce Committee a look at what it takes to run a restaurant business in the United States—and a daunting prognosis for what the new health care law could mean for businesses like his.

On behalf of the National Restaurant Association, Larry Schuler described for Congress how the law will significantly impact his employees and how he runs his business, and urged early action to make fundamental changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) of 2010. As the regulatory implementation moves quickly forward, the Association has attempted to constructively shape the regulations. Schuler said that without repeal or drastic changes to mitigate the most harmful effects of the new health care law, it will have drastic negative consequences on the restaurant industry and its employees.

The committee’s hearing was on “True Cost of PPACA: Effects on the Budget and Jobs.”

“We believe that offering health care coverage is the right thing to do and we are very proud of the fact that we have offered full medical coverage to our employees for a long time. However, faced with these very large increases in coverage costs, it will be extremely difficult for us to absorb these costs and continue offering coverage,” he said.

Schuler owns and operates three restaurants—one of them is a fourth-generation family restaurant opened by his great-grandfather in 1909. Schuler is now reexamining his plans to expand his business and create jobs in light of PPACA’s costs and administrative complexity. “Entrepreneurs like me are used to dealing with uncertainty and risk. We do so by preparing as best we can for the unknown. We have a glimpse of what is to come and have already begun preparing for the full implementation of this new law to preserve our businesses,” he added.

Schuler predicted that as a result of the new health care law defining a full-time employee as those working 30 hours per week, instead of the current 40 hours per week, and the requirement for employers to offer full-time workers health care benefits, the industry will have to more closely manage employees’ hours. In practice, labor and training costs, are already one of the most significant line item costs for restaurants. For employees, it may mean the need to get second and third jobs to make up for lost hours and income.

If the law is not repealed, Schuler urged the committee to make fundamental changes in how the law is implemented. Congress's goal must be to avoid job dislocation, not just in 2014, when U.S. businesses will be covered by the law's requirement that large employers provide minimum essential benefits to full-time employees or pay penalties, but before then, as employers begin planning for the law.

Schuler noted that the restaurant industry differs in significant ways from other industries, making compliance especially challenging for many restaurants. The restaurant industry is the nation's second-largest private-sector employer. Its nearly one million locations employ 12.8 million Americans, nearly 10 percent of the U.S. workforce. The industry is dominated by small businesses, with more than seven in 10 restaurants operating as single-unit establishments.

The industry’s workforce is also unique. More than half of the industry’s employees are under age 25; restaurants have a high proportion of part-time and seasonal employees; and the industry has a relatively higher turnover rate than other businesses. Labor costs are already one of the most significant line items for restaurants, accounting for about a third of the restaurant dollar. Restaurants have narrow pre-tax profit margins, averaging between 4 percent and 6 percent of sales, depending on the type of operation, according to National Restaurant Association research.

The NRA has been working since PPACA's enactment to help shape the regulations that implement the law. But some of the law's fundamental problems can’t be fixed through the regulatory process, Schuler said. "There are limits to the scope of change we can achieve through regulations."

The nation's restaurant industry looks forward to working with Congress “to improve health care for our employees without sacrificing their jobs in the process,” Schuler said.