Bill Marler, Attorney, Blogger, and Food Safety Advocate, Talks Turkey (Or Spinach, Rather)

Ily Goyanes interviews Bill Marler after initially picturing Marler Clark as "a dozen ambulance chasers strategically posted outside of establishments that served spinach in large quantities." Instead, she discovers Marler is "as passionate about preventing foodborne illness as he is about ensuring that victims are compensated for their medical bills, loss of wages, and decreased quality of life." Marler explains today's major threats are fresh produce—cantaloupes, sprouts, leafy greens—that lack a "kill step" before consumption. He challenges local food assumptions: "Just because you can look a farmer in the eye doesn't mean his or her food is implicitly safer. We've seen dozens of people—mostly children—sickened in 2012 alone because they drank raw (unpasteurized) milk produced at a small, organic farm." On FSMA implementation delays: "Call it election-year politics, but it can't go into effect until the White House Office of Management and Budget does its job. It was supported widely by both consumers and the food industry. There's no reason it shouldn't have gone into effect months ago." On chain of distribution liability, he notes retailers, distributors and manufacturers can all be held liable, with fault apportioned during litigation.