Many of our past and present clients are in Washington DC today lobbying on behalf of all of us to get congress to pass meaningful food safety legislation.

Lindsey and Michael Jennings (MI) – Lindsey became ill in 2008 in the Aunt Mids E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak linked to lettuce grown in California.

Peter and Jacob Hurley (CA) – Jacob was one of nearly 700 sickened from Salmonella-tainted peanut butter in 2009.

Cheryl and Brian Grubbs (CO) – Brian became ill from eating Salmonella-tainted peppers along with 1,200 others in 2008.

Terri Marshall (LA) – on behalf of her Mother in Law Mora Marshall who still remains in a nursing home after eating peanut butter tainted with Salmonella in 2007.

Karen Hibben-Levi (IA) was sickened in 2006 by E. coli O157:H7 tainted lettuce grown in California.

Juliana and Jacob Goswick (AZ) – Jacob developed Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome after eating baby spinach in 2006 linked to E. coli O157:H7.

Elizabeth Armstrong (IN) – her daughters, Ashley and Isabella both suffered E. coli O157:H7 infections due to consumption of baby spinach in 2006. Ashley developed severe Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome.

As I wrote to each of them yesterday:  "I want to honor each of you for taking the time to go to DC to try and move safe food onto the national agenda. What you are doing is a selfless act of citizenship and I am proud to represent (or have represented) you and your family. I hope you know how much this means to me personally and for the thousands of families who each year needlessly suffer what you have gone through. Standing up for your fellow citizens is what makes our country progress.

Thank you for the bottom of my heart."

We should all thank them.  Also, see here for some short videos on other clients.  It is important to put a human face on our food safety problems.