Stephen Hacala Poppy Seed Safety Act

This bill aims to keep contaminated poppy seeds out of the food supply. It tells the Secretary of Health and Human Services to set safety limits for morphine, codeine, and other related chemicals on poppy seeds used in food. If poppy seeds go over those limits, they would be treated as unsafe and could not be sold across state lines. The proposal for these limits must come within 1 year, and the final rule must be finished within 2 years. The bill also makes clear that contaminated poppy seeds are not protected from drug-control laws if they contain these opiate chemicals.

Lawmakers point to real harms: deaths linked to contaminated poppy seeds, positive drug tests for new mothers after eating poppy-seed foods, and a military warning telling service members to avoid poppy seeds because of contamination risk. Tests have found very high morphine levels on some poppy products sold in the U.S..

Key points

• Who is affected: Food companies and retailers that sell poppy seeds or foods containing them; people who buy and eat those products.
• What changes: Federal health officials must set contamination limits; poppy seeds over those limits cannot be sold as food; contaminated seeds can still be regulated under federal drug laws.
• When: Proposed limits within 1 year and final rules within 2 years after the law takes effect.