Anyone who has seen Food Inc., or has knowledge of this issue should be very happy with this news.  Essentially this legislation gives the FDA increased powers to regulate and mandate recalls of dangerous food.  This includes the tainted eggs, peanut butter and spinach that sickened thousands, in the past even killed some, and led major food makers to join consumer advocates in demanding stronger government oversight.

From the NY Times Article (link above):

“Despite unusual bipartisan support on Capitol Hill and a strong push from the Obama administration, the bill could still die because there might not be enough time for the usual haggling between the Senate and House of Representatives, which passed its own version last year. Top House Democrats said that they would consider simply passing the Senate version to speed approval.”

Let’s hope this bill, which is far from perfect but takes large steps towards a safer food infrastructure, comes into being soon and alleviates the concerns of many Americans.  

Maryland’s governor signed legislation this week creating a new kind of corporation that seeks to make a profit at the same time it performs social good.  (link to ABA article here)

This is the nation’s first “benefit corporation” law, say stories in Business Week and the Philadelphia Inquirer. It allows directors of such corporations to make decisions that consider employees, the community and the environment in addition to shareholder value. I had been under the impression there was similar legislation in Vermont, but I was misinformed. Apparently, William Clark Jr., a corporate lawyer at Drinker, Biddle & Reath, was the man who drafted the legislation, and he says that at least seven states are considering similar measures; among them, Vermont is closest to enacting a bill. (Ice cream entrepreneurs Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are backing the Vermont bill, according to the Associated Press. They believe that if Ben & Jerry’s had been incorporated as a benefit corporation, they may have had legal cover to avoid a buyout by current owners Unilever). California lawmakers are also considering related legislation to allow “flexible purpose corporations”, that is corporations which allow companies to protect their social missions without the affirmative requirements that the “benefit corporation” law puts in place.

The law is modeled on proposals by B-Lab, a Berwyn, Pa. non-profit that certifies socially responsible companies. The law lets entrepreneurs commit their for-profit ventures to a specific public good, and requires them to report on contributions to that goal and submit to auditing of their impact.

Personally, I’d like to see forward thinking states, such as VT, Mass, Cali, and others, immediately take up this type of legislation.  We talk about big business and corporations as evil, profit driven beasts with no conscience… this type of corporate entity could be the first step to changing that, and, hopefully, changing the world. 

Imagine if a company like Pepsi was incorporated like this?  It’d be more than just a marketing effort, it’d be a wholesale perpetual company wide effort.