20 years after deadly E. coli outbreak, some food safety standards fading
»Play Video
SEATTLE -- This month marks the 20th anniversary of a turning point in food safety, when an E. coli outbreak killed four local children and sickened hundreds more.
But one of the landmark changes that came out of the outbreak could be fading, and the father of one of the victims worries we might be forgetting what we learned in the wake of his son's death.
In February of 1993, the name Riley Detwiler dominated the news. Most have forgotten Riley's name, but not the reason he died.
E. coli, a bacteria few people had even heard about 20 years ago, became a household name because of an outbreak that began at Jack in the Box restaurants.
The nation learned a tough lesson through Riley and the three others who died in the outbreak, and his father, Darin Detwiler doesn't want anyone to forget.
"The word, the concept of E. coli was new to us. I think it was new for most people." Detwiler said.
After his son died, Detwiler became one of many leading the charge to make food safer. Significant progress has been made in the last two decades, but Detwiler worries a signature change is fading away.
All meat is supposed to include safe handling instructions, but on a recent trip to a grocery story, Detwiler found meatloaf and other raw products with no labels.
The label is required by law -- a direct result of the 1993 outbreak.
"There's no safety label whatsoever. There's no consistency," Detwiler said as he browsed the grocery store.
The safe handling labels remind consumers to wash their hands, to keep raw meat and poultry separate from other foods and to cook it thoroughly.
Detwiler knows most people probably don't look at the information, but he's got to believe it reaches someone.
"There's a lot of things that sounds like very simple decisions or steps to take, but the consequences, the negative, devastating consequences out there, unfortunately, I lived that first hand," he said.
The most important changes in meat safety came at the source, well before food reaches the grocery store.
Seattle attorney Bill Marler represented families in the Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak and built his career around food safety.
He said the meat industry cleaned up its act when it became illegal for hamburger to contain E. coli.
"They were forced to test for it. They were finding it, and then they had to destroy a lot of product,"Marler said. "When that happens, it's expensive. So they found different ways to intervene and get E. coli out of hamburger."
Marler said E. coli in hamburger is almost unheard of now, but he agrees the safe handling label is an important final step for food safety.
It's a lesson we were supposed to have learned in Riley's death. Detwiler doesn't think we've forgotten, but if safe-handling labels fade away, he worries we could.
But one of the landmark changes that came out of the outbreak could be fading, and the father of one of the victims worries we might be forgetting what we learned in the wake of his son's death.
In February of 1993, the name Riley Detwiler dominated the news. Most have forgotten Riley's name, but not the reason he died.
E. coli, a bacteria few people had even heard about 20 years ago, became a household name because of an outbreak that began at Jack in the Box restaurants.
The nation learned a tough lesson through Riley and the three others who died in the outbreak, and his father, Darin Detwiler doesn't want anyone to forget.
"The word, the concept of E. coli was new to us. I think it was new for most people." Detwiler said.
After his son died, Detwiler became one of many leading the charge to make food safer. Significant progress has been made in the last two decades, but Detwiler worries a signature change is fading away.
All meat is supposed to include safe handling instructions, but on a recent trip to a grocery story, Detwiler found meatloaf and other raw products with no labels.
The label is required by law -- a direct result of the 1993 outbreak.
"There's no safety label whatsoever. There's no consistency," Detwiler said as he browsed the grocery store.
The safe handling labels remind consumers to wash their hands, to keep raw meat and poultry separate from other foods and to cook it thoroughly.
Detwiler knows most people probably don't look at the information, but he's got to believe it reaches someone.
"There's a lot of things that sounds like very simple decisions or steps to take, but the consequences, the negative, devastating consequences out there, unfortunately, I lived that first hand," he said.
The most important changes in meat safety came at the source, well before food reaches the grocery store.
Seattle attorney Bill Marler represented families in the Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak and built his career around food safety.
He said the meat industry cleaned up its act when it became illegal for hamburger to contain E. coli.
"They were forced to test for it. They were finding it, and then they had to destroy a lot of product,"Marler said. "When that happens, it's expensive. So they found different ways to intervene and get E. coli out of hamburger."
Marler said E. coli in hamburger is almost unheard of now, but he agrees the safe handling label is an important final step for food safety.
It's a lesson we were supposed to have learned in Riley's death. Detwiler doesn't think we've forgotten, but if safe-handling labels fade away, he worries we could.
Yes, people are supposed to wash our hands all the time if they are handling food. Â Teens are the majority of workers at fast food restaurants...they don't know this. Â Schools don't teach these things. The labels are a good idea. Â
I wonder how much better the restaraunts around here would be if the health department were even half as harsh as the occasional "investigative reporting" stories that come out from time to time...
This is when I became a vegetarian.
I am taken back to that event with the memory of giving a particularly despised supervisor a book of gift certificates to Jack in the Box. Â :-D
Yes, things are so much better now. How does the big meat industry (like Tyson) kill E.coli? By soaking their meat in AMMONIA. Why is there so much E Coli? Because cows are fed cheap genetically modified corn instead of natural grass feeds.
The FDA and USDA are a complete joke and run by former Monsanto, Tyson, and Kraft executives. You can thank Bill Clinton for that.
What? I'm suppose to wash my hands before and after preparing food? Well shoot, that is just NEWS to me! It's a wonder I've lived as long as I have.....oh wait......I have this thing called "common sense" and have been doing that since I first entered a kitchen. Good thing our government is looking out for us by labeling everything that could possibly be hazardous. Gak.
If you want to really get scared, read a book by Robin Cook called, "Toxin." It's a great suspense novel all about the spread of ecoli and why we feel safer than we are.Â
yes, we need a label to tell us to wash our hands and other genius hints on safe meat handling. man we're dumb.
@SwampThing yes, "we" are dumb.  I recently watched a KFC worker (teenage boy) wear gloves and apron while taking out the trash and taking a smoke break.  He then went right back to work without washing his hands.  Mmmmm - 'Finger Lickin' Good.'
@SwampThing Believe it or not, some people do need to be told to wash their hands. How many times have you heard of hepatitis A being spread because some teenager didn't wash their hands after using the restroom. You would think that would be a no brainer. What about the time when we had an ecoli outbreak at the western washington fair? The little kids at the petting zoo came down with it because they petted the animals and then mommy and daddy let them eat lunch without washing their hands. Guess what, farm animals get manure in their hair. Yes, we are dumb!
@citizen kane swamp thing, I've worked in fast food restaurants (every position from prep to manager) and there are quite a few dumb folks out there that don't think to *wash* your hands every so often. The concept of at least changing your plastic gloves and washing your hands once an hour (or more often, depending on what you are handling) is laughable. I once met a 28 year old worker who thought washing his hands before he started his shift and putting on a clean pair of gloves would "magically" protect the food from germs his entire shift. Even after handing raw meat, taking the trash out and then going to the bathroom. Same gloves. Because for some reason known only to him, germs don't stick to latex gloves.