Peanut Corp. Files for Bankruptcy

Earlier Ga. salmonella scare also thought caused by rainwater

(NEWSER) - A leaky roof at the Peanut Corporation of America’s Georgia plant is seen as a possible culprit for the recent salmonella outbreak, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Not only is water necessary to activate salmonella, but rain could have washed salmonella-carrying bird droppings into the plant. “Allowing water to get into a dry processing environment would be like putting gas on a fire,” one expert said. More»

(NEWSER) - A third of US states do not require testing of the salmonella bacteria involved in reported illnesses, possibly hampering national efforts to identify outbreaks, MSNBC reports. If testing were mandatory, proponents say, a strain’s widespread dissemination could be more quickly identified and the source more easily pinpointed. But states without mandatory testing say their methods are just as effective and more economical. More»

FDA, Justice Dept. team up for investigation of Georgia peanut plant

(NEWSER) - The federal government has begun a criminal investigation into the peanut-driven salmonella outbreak, after it was revealed that a supplier shipped product that initially tested positive for the bacteria, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The House has called representatives from two testing labs, which certified negative results, to testify. Peanut Corp. of America denies it “sought favorable results from any lab.” More»

'We're lucky,' but drug-resistant bacteria lie in wait, experts warn

(NEWSER) - The ongoing salmonella outbreak has sickened hundreds of people and played a part in eight deaths, and that's the good news, experts tell MSNBC. The strain in question responds to the standard treatment, but other varieties of the salmonella bacteria have become increasingly resistant to antibiotics in recent decades."This is kind of an alert," says one doctor. "We're lucky this time." More»

(NEWSER) - The plant in Georgia implicated in the latest salmonella outbreak knowingly sold peanut products even after its own tests turned up evidence of the bacteria, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The plant's internal labs showed evidence of salmonella 12 times in the past two years, but the company sold the products after an outside lab deemed them safe, say federal investigators. More»