Preying on the fear of food contamination that has arisen since 911, the
Iowa Grocery Industry Association announced it's intention to begin
collecting signatures in order to replace Iowa's bottle bill with an
industry sponsored recycling bill.

Jerry Flegel, president of the association, says recycling turns grocery
stores into a dump
and compromises food safety.  Beginning tomorrow, grocery stores all across
Iowa will ask customers to sign a petition to replace the bottle bill with
their plan, which will exempt grocers from having to handle returns.

Instead of a 5 cent deposit on bottles they would have a 1 cent deposit on
a large range of items which the consumer would have to deliver to a
completely different facility.

Ron Pearson, CEO of HyVee Inc., said the bottle bill was introduced in a
much different climate.   Most containers were returnable bottles (which he
didn't mention were handled by grocers without complaint) and now most
beverages are in aluminum cans.

Today beverages are sold by many different stores and grocers have to
handle as much as 25 to 50% more than they have sold.  Thirty years ago
customers were not being served food as they went up and down the aisles;
now, in addition to samples, many grocers have restaurant sections.

We are not a garbage store, Mr. Pearson said.  The bottles and cans are
returned infected with Listeria, which may seem harmless enough until you
realize that it causes abortions, E coli,
Salmonella and other pathogens.

Mr. Pearson is concerned that the procedures used by 21st century grocers
cannot handle returns without contaminating products.

We have seen the slaughter of meat sped up and altered so that products are
contaminated with fecal waste.  Whether the grocery industry's recycling
bill is successful or not, a newly informed public should be  working to
make sure the industry's cost saving measures are not compromising food safety.

Perhaps a study of the way the grocery industry conducts itself with a view
to new regulations is in order.

Peggy Murdock

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