Posted on 06/24/2004 6:50:52 PM PDT by Pharmboy
SEATTLE (AP) - The Food and Drug Administration identified the substance that killed some dairy cows this month as a chromium compound, and a newspaper reported it contained chromium 6, the chemical investigated by activist Erin Brockovich. The FDA news release Wednesday did not say how the compound - a tacky, reddish-brown substance - might have gotten on the cattle.
"It's not something we use in the dairy industry," said Jay Gordon, executive director for the state Dairy Federation.
Ten cows became sick and three died after Enumclaw farmer John Koopman found the substance on them June 6. Their backs had blistered from exposure to it, and the cows became lethargic.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, quoting a federal investigative source who asked not to be identified, reported Thursday that it contained chromium 6, the cancer-causing element that brought fame to Brockovich in her 1996 water pollution case against Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
Chromium 6 is used by pharmaceutical and chemical companies to make new materials and by heavy industrial operations to clean aluminum and glass. Chromium compounds generally have a wide range of uses, from nutritional supplements to glass cleaners.
Dr. Robert Brackett, FDA food safety director, said he was withholding information on the compound for fear of compromising the criminal investigation.
Koopman, whose dairy is about 35 miles southeast of Seattle, did not immediately return a call for comment on the FDA finding.
He had pulled all milk from the sick animals. The FDA said Wednesday that tests on sick animals' milk showed it was safe to drink.
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I'd give a long, hard look at PETA and other "eco"-terrorists as the possible culprits.
Hmmm...interesting point. Ten years ago I would have thought you were a paranoid...not anymore.
Thanks for sharing that. . .
Wondering if this was a test of some kind by someone who has bigger plans. . .or, just some sick kids playing 'terrorist' or something. Is this stuff mentioned on the internet (silly question; no doubt).
I really hope the Authorities get a clue soon as to what happened here.
Perhaps some of these cows need to wear tiny video recorders; maybe just inside a cowbell?
This guy was targeted by locked out union Darigold workers, IMHO for selling to Darigold.
I think the locked out Darigold workers have been out of work for over a year now and several milk tanker trucks in Bellingham and North Snohomish County were targeted for vandalism a few weeks ago.
The trucks had there tanks drained in the middle of the night and all the tires slashed. This happened at two locations an hour and half drive apart on the same night.
Locked out Darigold workers are suspected in all these cases but nobody has gotten any proof yet.
I distill water regularly, last week there was a reddish-brown sustance in the bottom of the distiller - that was never there before. Now I am wondering if it was Cr6.
I never even thought of Peta. . .but yes, they do have the 'cow thing' now. Makes more sense than not.
The mind of a terrorist - nothing good about it.
It would seem we have some suspects...
I would consider PETA and other animal rights activists as prime suspects in this.
Just sounds like Iron. Where I used to live the well water was full of Iron, left deposits everywhere...
Chromium is used in solution to commercially and home tan the hides of cattle, sheep, and goats. Very poisonous substance and farms had and do have reason to keep large quantities around. On farm tanning of culled animal hides is common.
This guy was targeted by locked out union Darigold workers, IMHO for selling to Darigold.
Yep, them peaceful union people at work again.
Watch your mouth I'm a Kneebreak.., I mean Teamster. /smirk.
What would the motive be, I wonder, the means and opportunity should provide clues, as well.
Heard about this. I think that it's probably either union truckers who are still angry over the Darigold labor dispute (the tampering with milk trucks was almost certainly angry Darigold workers, IMHO) or environmental wackos like ELF. (Know a lot of union workers and most are decent folks, but you have nuts who try to threaten replacements and such. The Teamsters have a history of that sort of thing, IIRC.)
This is different from normal ELF tactics in that they were targeting animals, but that doesn't necessarily rule out environmental wackoes. ELF isn't really an organization, but rather a name that people use when they commit a crime on behalf of environmental causes. So I guess someone could have decided that they were helping protect wild animal's habitat by targeting domestic animals, and still called themselves ELF.
I read about this story a couple of days ago before they found out what it was. I was thinking the exact same thing you are. PETA, or some other whacked out enviro-nutbag group.
We might have a winner...
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Darigold-maker WestFarm, workers settle dispute
Dairy workers OK contract ending Seattle's longest lockout
By PAUL NYHAN
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
WestFarm Foods and workers resolved a bitter nine-month labor dispute last night as workers, exhausted by one of the longest lockouts in the history of Seattle labor relations, accepted a three-year contract.
Employees said the damage from the lockout just became too great, as banks moved to foreclose on homes and cars, marriages disintegrated under the stress of the lockout and health care benefits disappeared.
"I am going to vote for it because I want my job back," said Bill Hayes, who spent 12 years at the company. "If it fails, I don't think we will ever get our jobs back."
Despite voting 101 to 43 to ratify the pact, many workers were angry, feeling they gained little after giving up more than 36 weeks of pay.
"We are going back for nothing," Jessica Decker said as she left the union hall last night.
In the end, union members accepted an offer that cuts hourly pay by $1, though 77 cents of that reduction would be restored over the course of the three-year deal.
Under the new contract, both sides also agreed to drop charges filed with the National Labor Relations Board, a move that threatens to strip workers of the chance to recover back pay. The board, though, must still approve the settlement.
"Both sides were able to compromise and as a result have a solid package that enables us to return to producing the fine products of WestFarm Foods and dealing with the competitive challenges that face us all," Bill Anderson, WestFarm's vice president for legal and public affairs, said in a statement last night.
Now, workers and company officials must navigate the treacherous return to work by employees who lost tens of thousands of dollars in pay to a company that likely lost millions of dollars.
Dairy workers, however, won't immediately return to their jobs.
The company will contact each worker in the coming five days. But, if WestFarm doesn't have enough work, some workers will be placed on "layoff status," according to a copy of the contract.
The offer also proposed a grievance process that would mediate disputes over employees let go for alleged misconduct on picket lines, according to the source.
For nine months the dispute defied all efforts at settlement.
It also periodically turned ugly. The union launched a boycott of WestFarm products, such as the popular Darigold milk.
The company, on the other hand, at times posted guards and filmed union protests.
The fight began Aug. 31, when WestFarm locked out nearly 200 workers, saying their union wasn't bargaining in good faith and it could not operate under the imminent threat of a labor dispute that would put its perishable line of products at risk.
The union has said it wanted to keep talking, accusing the company of trying to break it up.
One of the most contentious issues has been the ability of WestFarm to send work to outsiders, known as subcontracting.
The union is upset about the company's decision to send roughly 60 driving jobs to an outside contractor.
It also has claimed that WestFarm is seeking at least the authority to send out even more jobs.
Under the new contract, the company agreed to discuss with the union future plans to outsource work and provide it an opportunity to offer alternatives. But WestFarm retained the right to send work to outsiders if it can prove the product line loses money, according to the contract.
After months of close calls, the two sides finally moved closer to a deal over the last few days.
The vote capped a marathon bargaining session that broke up around 4 a.m. yesterday.
A federal mediator offered WestFarm Foods and the Teamsters union the package eventually accepted by union members.
After months of picketing, boycotts and legal charges, it was hard for some to say which side gained the advantage.
"I don't think that either one of us has won," said John Faver, who worked at WestFarm for the last 18 years.
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