ATLANTA (AP) -- Gov. Sonny Perdue is expected to sign a bill that would make Georgia the first to require food makers to swiftly alert state inspectors if their internal tests show their products are tainted.
The proposed food safety regulations would require the food processors to report the results within 24 hours.
The proposal moved rapidly through the Georgia Legislature in the wake of the salmonella outbreak that originated in a south Georgia peanut processing plant. It sickened hundreds and was linked to the deaths of at least nine people.
Federal officials, food scientists, legal experts and industry groups cannot point to another state with similar requirements. And Georgia lawmakers say the new provision would make it the first state to have such a rule.