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Photograph by Robert Scheer
Laurie Girand hugs daughter Anna McGregor in this Saratoga News file photograph taken when Anna was 3.
Saratogan earns recognition for her food labeling efforts
By Jason Baker
In the fall of 1996, three separate outbreaks of a harmful strain of E. coli in California, Colorado, Washington and British Columbia were traced to unpasteurized apple juice and cider.
Saratoga's Anna McGregor, then 3 years old, was among 70 victims infected by juice from a single, local manufacturer, Odwalla, Inc. One child died in that outbreak and an additional 13 children, including McGregor, developed life-threatening complications.
Now 5 1/2, Anna appears to be doing well, despite some bothersome stomach pain and mandatory doctor visits. But there is no cure for such an E. coli infection, and Anna's mother, Laurie Girand, said all that can be done is to wait and hope there is not permanent damage. Even if a child survives an outbreak, she or he faces a lifetime risk of renal failure, diabetes and various health problems, Girand said.
"We're worrying about her stomach pain right now. We don't entirely know what it might be," she said.
After the outbreak, Odwalla went public with a policy to not sell unpasteurized juice, debuting what they called a flash pasteurization process intended to maintain the taste of fresh juice but kill germs. The company even went so far as to recommend other companies also stop selling unpasteurized juice.
But because Anna came so close to death, Girand took further action to inform the public of the dangers. Working with STOP (Safe Tables Our Priority), an organization devoted to victims' assistance, public education and policy advocacy for safe food, Girand was instrumental in a campaign that led to a Food and Drug Administration decision in July of 1998 requiring warning labels on all unpasteurized juice products by the fall of 1998.
On May 21 in Washington, D.C., the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, a division of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration responsible for food safety, recognized Girand for her efforts.
Joe Levitt, director of CFSAN, honored Girand for "having provided individual assistance to the FDA in her advocacy for placing warning labels on unpasteurized juices by the start of the 1998 fall apple cider season."
"Laurie is to be praised for taking personal adversity and changing it into something positive for consumers all around the country," Levitt said. "Her forceful advocacy, based on her own family's experience with foodborne illness helped ensure that American consumers received essential information about the potential hazards of unpasteurized juice in time for the beginning of last fall's juice season."
Though she takes pride in her achievement, Girand considers it a small victory in an ongoing battle for food safety. While the labels do represent progress, she said specific warnings to pregnant women should have been included in the warning. The FDA opted against that inclusion based on a lack of sufficient data, but continues to research the case, she said.
She also worries about the popularity of juice bars, where customers could be served unpasteurized juices without their knowing.
"People assume they will be healthier for their choices. Most are not aware of the risk factor," she said.
Girand devotes between 5 and 10 hours per week to STOP, and as many as 30 hours in a busy week.
As for her accomplishments, Girand credits the support of other families who share similar stories.
"Even when it was painful to relive their experiences one more time publicly, they were willing to make a stand. It's easy to want your life to go back to normal. You want to forget. But the food industry is going to be there forever," she said. "As a consumer, you have to be vigilant and understand that the hazardous products that are out there are very hazardous."
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Saratoga, California Since 1975
