Created: 2/5/2009 6:20:21 AM 
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Lawmakers are looking into the national salmonella outbreak and vowing to press for stronger food safety laws and more money for inspections. Iowa Democratic Senator Tom Harkin, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, says its time to find and close the gaps in the system. His committee holds a hearing on the outbreak today. Meanwhile, more peanut products are being added to a recall list that surpasses 1,000 items -- from ice cream to crackers to granola bars. Independent experts say it appears to be a record number of products for a recall involving foods consumed by humans. In Congress, lawmakers are dusting off legislation that went nowhere under the previous administration and hoping for better luck this time. But it remains unclear whether Congress can deliver major improvements in food safety this year.
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