The poison squadDeborah Blum
The poison squad
by Deborah Blum · first published 2018
7mentions
5recommended by
7HN commenters
2018–2023first – last mentioned
71% recommend29% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Covers the late 1800s food industry, when formaldehyde, borax and arsenic were common additives, and the early fight that led to the FDA; recommended for anyone interested in food safety or regulatory history.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley set out to ensure food safety. He selected food tasters to test various food additives and preservatives, letting them know that the substances could be harmful or deadly. The tasters were recognized for their courage, and became known as the poison squad.
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So, I'm outing myself as a book nerd (read a lot during quarantine), but I also recently enjoyed The Poison Squad by Deborah Blum which covered the creation of the FDA during the end of the 19th century and a few of their first BIG wins were getting formaldehyde, borax, arsenic and lead out of milk, canned meats…
on “Where is the scrutiny over FDA’s role in the overdose epidemic?” ↗If you’re interested, The Poison Squad by Deborah Blum is both horrifying and fascinating read about the food industry in late 1800s - early 1900s, and the foundation of the FDA. At the time, it was common to put formaldehyde in meat and…
on “Move Over, Software Developers – In Cybersecurity, the Government Wants to Drive” ↗…techs have repeatedly falsified test results for decades. This is probably especially a problem when organized crime is involved. If you are at all interested in food safety, I highly recommend "The Poison Squad", about the foundation of the FDA.[1][2] [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euBoKIm1v6Q [2] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0rKnxm3X7M
on “Fancy honey might not actually be honey” ↗…enough, are some of the biggest manufactures of supplements too) just wish all their products could enjoy such lax standards of regulation. Meanwhile, to everyone else, I wholeheartedly recommend The Poison Squad: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/poison-squ... https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/312067/the-poison-s...
on “Glucosamine Supplementation Reduces All-Cause Mortality: Study” ↗…formaldehyde and borax used to preserve milk and meat). However the department's leadership, and in a few cases the U.S. President, intervened to protect business interests. If you're interested check out The Poison Squad[1]. [1] https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/312067/the-poison-s...
on “FDA Denies Petition to Ban All Phthalates in Food Packaging” ↗I don't think history beat bears that out. I was just listening to an interview with Deborah Blum on her new book, The Poison Squad, concerning the history of food safety regulations. It seems like most corporations have strong incentives to make defective products; bad products drive out good. As for litigation, without regulations,…
on “Common-Knowledge Attacks on Democracy” ↗I don't think so. The article openly says it's adapted from the book. It's just marketing. Submarines were hidden. This was in the article: "ESSAY DRAWN FROM THE POISON SQUAD BY DEBORAH BLUM, PUBLISHED BY PENGUIN PRESS, AN IMPRINT OF PENGUIN PUBLISHING GROUP, A DIVISION OF PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE, LLC. COPYRIGHT © 2018 BY DEBORAH BLUM."
on “Henry Heinz used ketchup to improve food safety” ↗