Keeping big food honest

Whistleblowers in the food industry put their jobs and reputations at considerable risk when they feel motivated to come forward. Public health attorney Amanda Hitt has devoted her career to protecting these individuals and creating a safe environment for them to speak, as reported by Organic Connections, the magazine for Natural Vitality.

Jenna Blumenfeld, Freelancer

September 25, 2012

1 Min Read
Keeping big food honest

Within the food industry, being a whistleblower is a risky business. Public health attorney Amanda Hitt is the Food Integrity Campaign director for the Government Accountability Project (GAP), and she has made it her life’s work to ensure it is safe for whistleblowers to come forward.

Through her dedication to keeping food honest, Hitt has helped bring attention to such food atrocities like Beef Products, Inc. “pink slime” and unsanitary practices in a supermarket chain’s handling of meat. Recently, legislation has been introduced that would criminalize undercover videotaping of food processing operations.

“These are anti-whistleblower statutes,” said Hitt in an interview with Organic Connections. “If you have a whistleblower who needs his or her disclosure to be validated, we very often see the use of recording devices to do that. Many times we can’t vindicate these people or validate their claims without this sort of mechanical third party—the use of a camera or recording device.”

Read more in Organic Connections.

About the Author(s)

Jenna Blumenfeld

Freelancer

Jenna Blumenfeld lives in Boulder, Colorado, where she reports on the natural products industry, sustainable agriculture, and all things plant based. 

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