Despite dificult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many fede... more Despite dificult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many federal-level labor protections. The exclusion of farmworkers from standards that apply to most other workers is refered to as agricultural exceptionalism. This exclusion was born from successful eforts of southern agricultural interests to exempt black sharecroppers from the New Deal package of social reforms. Farmworkers continue to belong to particularly vulnerable social and economic groups. U.S. states can establish their own labor protections that go beyond federal laws and regulations. Though agricultural exceptionalism is understood at the federal level, litle is known about agricultural exceptionalism in state labor standards. This study is a comprehensive 50state legal and regulatory mapping of minimum wage, overtime, and rest and meal period standards as they apply to farmworkers. To analyze the extent of agricultural exceptionalism in the states, we performed a search of iterativ...
The prevalence of obesity among US children raises numerous health concerns. One pathway to reduc... more The prevalence of obesity among US children raises numerous health concerns. One pathway to reduce childhood obesity is by decreasing energy intake through the ingestion of fewer calories. Yet, food and beverage manufacturers often promote energy-dense items for children via varied health claims. Deceptive health claims are prohibited, and may be addressed through litigation or governmental regulatory efforts. While the amount of legal action against these potentially deceptive claims has increased, no comprehensive assessment has been conducted. This article, which analyzes litigation and governmental regulatory activities, considers key factors that may influence decisions to take legal action against potentially deceptive health claims on foods and beverages, including scientific support, forum selection, selection of plaintiffs, and potential public health impact.
Veterinary drugs are used to treat or prevent diseases related to sanitary conditions and crowdin... more Veterinary drugs are used to treat or prevent diseases related to sanitary conditions and crowding in aquaculture. Residues of these drugs may pose risks to consumers when ingested in seafood. To detect drug residues in domestic and imported seafood, inspecting bodies use targeted and random testing, coupled with laboratory analyses. This study analyzed veterinary drug inspection policies and violations among four major inspecting bodies (European Union, United States, Japan, and China) from 2000 to 2009 to assess public health risks from veterinary drug residues in imported seafood. The percentages of imported seafood shipments inspected were 20% to 50% for the EU, 18% for Japan, 2% to 15% for Canada, and 2% for the US. Across all inspecting bodies, Asian farm-raised shrimp and prawns, catfish (or fish sold as catfish), crab, tilapia, and eel, and Chilean salmon had greater veterinary drug violations than other products. Among exporting nations, Vietnam had the highest portion of v...
Despite difficult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many fed... more Despite difficult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many federal-level labor protections. The exclusion of farmworkers from standards that apply to most other workers is referred to as agricultural exceptionalism. This exclusion was born out of the successful efforts of southern agricultural interests to exempt black sharecroppers from the New Deal package of social reforms. Farmworkers continue to belong to particularly vulnerable social and economic groups. U.S. states can establish their own labor protections that go beyond federal laws and regulations. Though agricultural exceptionalism is understood at the federal level, little is known about agricultural exceptionalism in state labor standards. This study is a comprehensive 50-state legal and regulatory mapping of minimum wage, overtime, and rest and meal period standards as they apply to farmworkers. To analyze the extent of agricultural exceptionalism in the states, we performed a search of iteratively defined search terms in WestLawNext. Two researchers independently read and coded identified state laws and regulations in their entireties. Results reveal that agricultural exceptionalism is far-reaching in state-level minimum wage and overtime protections. Exceptionalism is universal in overtime standards. Rest and meal period standards exist less frequently at the state level, and exceptions for agriculture in those standards are rare. The results from this analysis are useful in identifying states and policy areas with strong and weak protections for farmworkers.
To discover how organic food factors into low-income consumers’ overall understanding of healthy ... more To discover how organic food factors into low-income consumers’ overall understanding of healthy eating, we analyzed 36 in-depth interviews with adults in Baltimore, Maryland. We asked participants to discuss their understanding of healthy eating. Unprompted, many participants discussed organic food or attributes commonly understood to define organic food. Some participants believed health issues including cancer, weight gain, and allergies can arise from consuming nonorganic foods. Participants expressed that organic competes with other food attributes such as nutrient content in informing their perception of whether a food is healthy. Several voiced concern that nonorganic foods are responsible for weight gain and abnormal development. Our results show that despite limited access, organic is an important factor in some consumers’ understanding of healthy food. Consumers’ perceptions of organic can swamp or compete with other messages about healthy eating. Therefore, consumers’ understanding of organic should be considered in developing diet-related messages and programs.
Despite dificult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many fede... more Despite dificult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many federal-level labor protections. The exclusion of farmworkers from standards that apply to most other workers is refered to as agricultural exceptionalism. This exclusion was born from successful eforts of southern agricultural interests to exempt black sharecroppers from the New Deal package of social reforms. Farmworkers continue to belong to particularly vulnerable social and economic groups. U.S. states can establish their own labor protections that go beyond federal laws and regulations. Though agricultural exceptionalism is understood at the federal level, litle is known about agricultural exceptionalism in state labor standards. This study is a comprehensive 50state legal and regulatory mapping of minimum wage, overtime, and rest and meal period standards as they apply to farmworkers. To analyze the extent of agricultural exceptionalism in the states, we performed a search of iterativ...
The prevalence of obesity among US children raises numerous health concerns. One pathway to reduc... more The prevalence of obesity among US children raises numerous health concerns. One pathway to reduce childhood obesity is by decreasing energy intake through the ingestion of fewer calories. Yet, food and beverage manufacturers often promote energy-dense items for children via varied health claims. Deceptive health claims are prohibited, and may be addressed through litigation or governmental regulatory efforts. While the amount of legal action against these potentially deceptive claims has increased, no comprehensive assessment has been conducted. This article, which analyzes litigation and governmental regulatory activities, considers key factors that may influence decisions to take legal action against potentially deceptive health claims on foods and beverages, including scientific support, forum selection, selection of plaintiffs, and potential public health impact.
Veterinary drugs are used to treat or prevent diseases related to sanitary conditions and crowdin... more Veterinary drugs are used to treat or prevent diseases related to sanitary conditions and crowding in aquaculture. Residues of these drugs may pose risks to consumers when ingested in seafood. To detect drug residues in domestic and imported seafood, inspecting bodies use targeted and random testing, coupled with laboratory analyses. This study analyzed veterinary drug inspection policies and violations among four major inspecting bodies (European Union, United States, Japan, and China) from 2000 to 2009 to assess public health risks from veterinary drug residues in imported seafood. The percentages of imported seafood shipments inspected were 20% to 50% for the EU, 18% for Japan, 2% to 15% for Canada, and 2% for the US. Across all inspecting bodies, Asian farm-raised shrimp and prawns, catfish (or fish sold as catfish), crab, tilapia, and eel, and Chilean salmon had greater veterinary drug violations than other products. Among exporting nations, Vietnam had the highest portion of v...
Despite difficult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many fed... more Despite difficult working conditions, farmworkers in the United States are excluded from many federal-level labor protections. The exclusion of farmworkers from standards that apply to most other workers is referred to as agricultural exceptionalism. This exclusion was born out of the successful efforts of southern agricultural interests to exempt black sharecroppers from the New Deal package of social reforms. Farmworkers continue to belong to particularly vulnerable social and economic groups. U.S. states can establish their own labor protections that go beyond federal laws and regulations. Though agricultural exceptionalism is understood at the federal level, little is known about agricultural exceptionalism in state labor standards. This study is a comprehensive 50-state legal and regulatory mapping of minimum wage, overtime, and rest and meal period standards as they apply to farmworkers. To analyze the extent of agricultural exceptionalism in the states, we performed a search of iteratively defined search terms in WestLawNext. Two researchers independently read and coded identified state laws and regulations in their entireties. Results reveal that agricultural exceptionalism is far-reaching in state-level minimum wage and overtime protections. Exceptionalism is universal in overtime standards. Rest and meal period standards exist less frequently at the state level, and exceptions for agriculture in those standards are rare. The results from this analysis are useful in identifying states and policy areas with strong and weak protections for farmworkers.
To discover how organic food factors into low-income consumers’ overall understanding of healthy ... more To discover how organic food factors into low-income consumers’ overall understanding of healthy eating, we analyzed 36 in-depth interviews with adults in Baltimore, Maryland. We asked participants to discuss their understanding of healthy eating. Unprompted, many participants discussed organic food or attributes commonly understood to define organic food. Some participants believed health issues including cancer, weight gain, and allergies can arise from consuming nonorganic foods. Participants expressed that organic competes with other food attributes such as nutrient content in informing their perception of whether a food is healthy. Several voiced concern that nonorganic foods are responsible for weight gain and abnormal development. Our results show that despite limited access, organic is an important factor in some consumers’ understanding of healthy food. Consumers’ perceptions of organic can swamp or compete with other messages about healthy eating. Therefore, consumers’ understanding of organic should be considered in developing diet-related messages and programs.
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