Occupational Diseases: Butter Flavoring Still Dangerous...

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto of a bill that would have required manufacturers and wholesalers to tell where hazardous chemicals would have been used does not mean that such chemicals are not dangerous. Francisco Herrera, a 32-year-old employee of a California company that manufactures diacetyl, has bronchiolitis obliterans. The disease has destroyed 70% of Herrera's lungs and could kill him if he does not get a lung transplant.

Governor's veto doesn't change facts about hazards faced by employees

In 2002, federal scientists found that diacetyl was toxic to workers who inhaled the substance working in microwave popcorn plants. The flavoring industry is believed to have known as early as 1985 that diacetyl was harmful to the respiratory system. Federal scientists have asked the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to make the dangers of diacetyl better known, but OSHA has yet to take action.