Contaminated spices: Imported spices have double salmonella risk (UPI) -- About 12 percent of spices imported into the U.S. each year are contaminated with insects, animal excrement, rodent hair and rogue objects including rubber bands, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has released a draft of its risk profile on pathogens and filth in spices, based on data collected from 2007 to 2010, in an effort to improve regulation in the wake of spice-related salmonella outbreaks. "Nearly all of the insects found in spice samples were stored product pests, indicating inadequate packing or storage conditions," the report reads. The presence of rodent hair [without a root] in spices is generally indicative of contamination by rodent feces. Their findings also show 7 percent of imported spices are contaminated with salmonella -- twice the prevalence in all other imported foods regulated by the FDA. Nearly 1.2 million people in the U.S. are sickened by salmonella each year. Fourteen spice-related outbreaks between 1973 and 2010 have sickened 2,000 people. Of those, 128 were hospitalized. The FDA said the relatively small number of outbreaks was likely because consumers use very little of the spices at a time. Imports from Mexico and India had the highest rate of contamination, the study found. The FDA reported that about one-quarter of spices, oils and food colorings used in the U.S. are imported from India. The government shutdown prevented FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg from visiting India to meet with spice industry officials on safety. Those officials are beginning to offer incentives for farmers to change practices that could lead to contamination, including traditional harvest and handling methods. As part of the Food Safety Modernization Act, the FDA has proposed new rules for foreign supplier verification.