Month: February 2014

A new federal program aims to standardize inspection procedures for pet food and farm animal feed produced in the United States, making them safer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Friday. The Animal Feed Regulatory Program Standards comprise a series of new voluntary standards for inspections by state and other regulatory programs that oversee the production of pet food and feed for farm animals such as cattle, chickens and pigs. Concern over the safety of pet food and farm animal feed has mounted in recent years, as discoveries of salmonella-contaminated dog food and livestock feed contaminated with a corn-based toxin led to waves of product recalls and worries about the safety of the U.S. food production system.

By Patricia Reaney NEW YORK (Reuters) – Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who was found in his New York apartment on February 2 with a needle in his arm, died of an accidental overdose of drugs, the New York City Chief Medical Examiner said on Friday. The cause of death was acute drug intoxication, including heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines and amphetamine, according to Julie Bolcer, spokeswoman for the Medical Examiner's Office. She added that it is the final determination in Hoffman's death. A drug overdose had been suspected when Hoffman, 46, was discovered in his apartment along with dozens of small plastic bags containing a substance believed to be heroin.

Find out what the medical examiner learned about Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death.