The Poison Squad

One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century

By: Deborah Blum

Narrated by: Kirsten Potter

Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

A New York Times Notable Book.

The inspiration for PBS's American Experience film The Poison Squad.

From Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times best-selling author Deborah Blum, the dramatic true story of how food was made safe in the United States and the heroes, led by the inimitable Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, who fought for change

By the end of 19th century, food was dangerous. Lethal, even. "Milk" might contain formaldehyde, most often used to embalm corpses. Decaying meat was preserved with both salicylic acid, a pharmaceutical chemical, and borax, a compound first identified as a cleaning product. This was not by accident; food manufacturers had rushed to embrace the rise of industrial chemistry and were knowingly selling harmful products. Unchecked by government regulation, basic safety, or even labelling requirements, they put profit before the health of their customers. By some estimates, in New York City alone, thousands of children were killed by "embalmed milk" every year. Citizens - activists, journalists, scientists, and women's groups - began agitating for change. But even as protective measures were enacted in Europe, American corporations blocked even modest regulations. Then, in 1883, Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, a chemistry professor from Purdue University, was named chief chemist of the agriculture department, and the agency began methodically investigating food and drink fraud, even conducting shocking human tests on groups of young men who came to be known as, "The Poison Squad".

Over the next 30 years, a titanic struggle took place, with the courageous and fascinating Dr. Wiley campaigning indefatigably for food safety and consumer protection. Together with a gallant cast, including the muckraking reporter Upton Sinclair, whose fiction revealed the horrific truth about the Chicago stockyards; Fannie Farmer, then the most famous cookbook author in the country; and Henry J. Heinz, one of the few food producers who actively advocated for pure food, Dr. Wiley changed history. When the landmark 1906 Food and Drug Act was finally passed, it was known across the land, as "Dr. Wiley's Law".

Blum brings to life this timeless and hugely satisfying "David and Goliath" tale with righteous verve and style, driving home the moral imperative of confronting corporate greed and government corruption with a bracing clarity, which speaks resoundingly to the enormous social and political challenges we face today.

©2018 Deborah Blum (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Full of fascinating detail...a valuable contribution to understanding the politics of food.” (Nature)

“[Blum’s] prose is graceful, and her book is full of vivid, unsettling detail.... The Poison Squad offers a powerful reminder that truth can defeat lies, that government can protect consumers and that an honest public servant can overcome the greed of private interests.” (Eric Schlosser, New York Times Book Review)

“[E]ngrossing.... Blum’s well-informed narrative - complete with intricate battles between industry lobbyists and a coalition of scientists, food activists, and women’s groups - illuminates the birth of the modern regulatory state and its tangle of reformist zeal, policy dog-fights, and occasional overreach.... [A] page-turner.” (Publishers Weekly)

“A detailed, highly readable history of food and drink regulation in the United States.... [The Poison Squad] shows the push and pull of competing economic, political and social interests. The journey our country has taken in establishing food, drink and drug regulation is an important one to understand because it is still going on.” (Wall Street Journal)

Hero of a forgotten episode in US science

The Poison Squad is about the career of Dr. Harvey Wiley, a chemist in the US Department of Agriculture who led the fight against food adulteration in the late 19th and early 20th century. It is incredible what was passed off as food and food additives in a period with no regulation. In the pursuit of a buck, manufacturers would sell "coffee" that contained no coffee and "soft drinks" sold to children that contained high levels of caffeine, morphine, and even heroin. They would add formaldehyde to spoiled milk and borax to spoiled meat that was then canned and sold to the US military.

In the present day the case for strong regulation seems clear but Dr. Wiley ran into a lot of opposition, even when the safety of common food preservatives such as formaldehyde and boric acid was scientifically questioned by his "poison squad" studies, which used a panel of human test subjects fed various doses of these ingredients. Such studies would not pass scientific ethics boards today. The Poison Squad describes the various tangles Wiley had with anti-regulation advocates at the DOA and with food manufacturers' lobbyists.

It's an interesting story, especially for scientists. The narration is not great however. The narrator speaks as if half the text is in quotation marks, especially chemical terms such as "formaldehyde". It sounds as if she is reading a legal text rather than a historical text.

Everyone should read this book!

Just an awesome listen. It’s super eye opening to learn about the history food regulations (or lack thereof!). So many people romanticize the past, and think that regulations are bad. Unless they have to comply, companies will adulterate food because they make more money!

great stuff

good book, great reader. recommended for all interested in food safety in America. fast moving history

Good but just the origins

Very good but only the beginning of the 20 Century. I'd like to learn more up to now.

Everyone should read this book

I loved this book! I am proud and ashamed of our country for their part in food safety

What's in your food?

This is a good lesson on politics that is germane even today. Here is the birth of the FDA. Without two things, it wouldn't have happened. The chief chemist (Dr Wiley) was the great advocate supported by a vast majority of consumers - who were vocal. The villains were big food business in cahoots with the lawmakers and the bureaucracy. You can be glad today that you don't have formaldehyde in your milk and many other things. Lessons here need to be applied to the gun laws and environmental protection. Read and learn.

Excellent and Timely Lesson and Call to Action

The research that went into creating the potrait of a brilliant, dedicated and passionate, though long-suffering and sometimes self-sabotaging character of Dr. Wiley is admirable. As the epilogue clearly states, this book provides a timely look at the history of food regulation and the long-running war between science and politics; as we look at Wiley's discoveries, battles and political roadblocks toward protecting public health through the Pure Foods Act, we are reminded how little has changed in the landscape of pilitics and how crucual both an educated public and tireless crusaders are to ensuring the public good over the interests of business. I enjoyed this book, and I enjoyed the reader's performance. I think she is able to convery Wiley's wry, dry humor very well. <3

Food Chemist

As a former Food Chemistry Laboratory Director at the FDA for 31 years I am proud and blessed to be a member of Wiley's professional legacy. We are all global citizens and as such we must be more vigilant in protecting the food supply for all.

Excellent historical account of a public servant. Much respect to Blum!

Herbert Washington Wiley, Intrepid Fighter for Pute Food

The Poison Squad was a fascinating account of the battle for protection and documentation of what Americans eat. Although the book is heavy with facts, dates and court cases, Deborah Blum has clearly explained how difficult it was (and still is) to protect our food sources against the demands of corporate greed. Wiley’s battles were life long and his sacrifices are still felt. Without crusaders like Wiley and writers like Blum, these huge advancements in public safety would go unappreciated. The Poison Squad is worth the time and patience to read!

Entirely Too Thorough

If you're interested in the origins of the FDA and the legislation surrounding it, watch the PBS American Experience Episode based on this book. If you're doing deep research on the subject, or looking for nitty gritty details, this book has eleven full hours of them. Kudos to author for her meticulous research and compilation of the material. The very real struggle against this country's government and oligarchs to ensure citizens had safe food to eat is a story that needed to be recorded and remembered. And the victory in that struggle is one that needs retold in these questionable political times.