Beware The Germ Monster

A globlike character who goes by the name of BAC is greeted Friday by Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman and Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala in Washington. The “Fight BAC” campaign, supported by about $550,000 from the food industry, is part of a new effort to educate consumers about ways to protect against food-borne illness at home. The character will be shown in TV ads, posters and store brochures trying to spread contamination throughout a kitchen. Food-borne pathogens cause up to 9,000 deaths and 33 million illnesses a year.