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It is well documented what kind of poisons got added to food in the 1800s before governments started to regulate things.

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Well too be fair in the 1800s we really didn't know how poisonous a lot of those things were. Rich people ate off fancy dinnerware painted in lead.

I assume you are replying to "You are making the assumption that there are high levels of lead in the food BECAUSE food makers want to kill you." so I have to ask: is it because they want to kill customers or not?

They don't _want_ to do anything but maximize profits - regulating the level of lead in those products directly impacts the bottom line, hence the need for regulation.

The free market is awesome, but it can't effectively price externalities, especially those which have diffuse origins or targets.

OK, but this thread began with someone saying: "If food makers (or the makers of school supplies in this case) didn't want to kill you, then why is there high levels of lead in the food, a substance which is known to be very toxic?"

It is making the assumption that they are doing it to kill you against which I spoke.

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