|
|
NEWS
RECALLS
COMPLAINT FORM
SCAM ALERTS
RESOURCES
Small Claims Guide Class Actions Lemon Laws FAQ Newsletters |
Share |
| Automotive Education Employment Electronics Family Finance Health Homeowners Insurance Pets Shopping Travel |
|
|
|
![]() |
Congress Pressing for Better Food SafetyPeanut Butter, Pet Food Poisonings Leave Tempers Short at House Hearing |
|||||||||||||
|
By Joseph S. Enoch April 19, 2007
The House Agriculture Subcommittee hearing focused on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) which is responsible for inspecting meat, poultry and processed egg products. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) highlighted a Centers for Disease Control report that revealed that over the past five years, instances of food-borne illnesses have either increased or stayed the same. Many of those pathogens are found in meat products. However, over that same period of time, the FSIS found decreases or unchanging figures in instances of those illnesses at the meat plants, slaughterhouses and samples it inspected, according to Richard Raymond, M.D., the USDA's Under Secretary for Food Safety. But according to a February Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, many plants are not inspected frequently and about one-third were not inspected at all in the past year. In response to the CDC's figures and the GAO report, Raymond said the USDA is implementing a risk-based inspection (RBI) process which will focus inspection efforts on suspect plants and slaughterhouses based on past data. He said he hopes to implement RBI by June. DeLauro asked Raymond many pointed questions about how the FSIS will determine which plants to inspect. Raymond was unable to answer many of those questions. At that point, DeLauro, chairman of the subcommittee, lost her temper. "For the past several years, the GAO has pointed its finger at food safety as high-risk yet the food safety agencies have ignored those claims!" DeLauro shouted. "I am going to do everything I can to delay RBI until we're standing on solid facts." Today's hearing highlighted the frequently-heard complaint that the U.S. food safety network is a patchwork of agencies not efficiently protecting consumers. The GAO report noted that 15 agencies comprise the U.S. food safety network. Even within the USDA, there are various departments in charge of one type of food or another. Food Safety ActDeLauro and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) have responded with the Safe Food Act, legislation which would put all the powers of those 15 agencies under one roof, potentially eliminating the overlaps and holes that the GAO uncovered. At today's hearing, representatives pressed Raymond on the deadly delays in recalls of peanut butter and pet foods. "That's not our jurisdiction," was his frequent response. "If everyone is pointing their finger at someone else, I don't see how we're accomplishing much," Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.) said. Despite the lapses in concrete data Raymond was able to provide, he told ConsumerAffairs.com that he believes RBI is the best route to safe food and that the Safe Food Act will create too much bureaucracy. The next step for the Safe Food Act is that it will go before the Agriculture and Commerce Committees for a joint vote in the House. In the Senate, it has been referred to the Agriculture Committee. If it passes those votes, it will go before the entire House and Senate floors for a vote and then to the President. There are no scheduled committee votes for either the Senate or House versions of this bill said DeLauro spokeswoman Adriana Surfas. "I know she is working hard to get this bill before those committees," Surfas said. Report Your Experience
|
|||||||||||||
Advertisement
|
|
Custom Search
|
||||
|
AUTOMOTIVE Dealers Manufacturers Service Extended Warranties Lemon Laws Recalls Tires Transporters FAMILY Aging Children, Parenting Recalls Dating Education Entertainment Pets Weddings |
FINANCE Annuities Banks Credit Cards Debt Collection Debt Counseling Insurance Investing Loans Mortgages Payday Loans Student Loans Tax Prep HEALTH Doctors Drugs, Pharmacies Health Clubs Hearing Care Hospitals Nursing Homes Nutrition, Diets Vision Care Weight Loss |
HOUSE & HOME Appliances Cookware Furniture Home Improvements Lawn & Garden Movers Pools & Spas Realtors, Rental Agents Recalls Utilities ELECTRONICS Cable TV/DBS Cameras Cell Phones Computers Home Electronics Internet Access Local Phone Service Long Distance VoIP |
SHOPPING In-Home Online Retail Stores Sporting Goods Supermarkets Telemarketers TRAVEL Airlines Bus Lines Car Rental Cruises Hotels Travel Agents Trains RESOURCES Class Actions Complaint Form Small Claims Guide Lemon Laws |
CONSUMER NEWS Latest News Automotive Telecom Financial Health Homeowners Scams Seniors Travel More ... RECALLS Automotive Children's Products Drugs Food Household Products Sporting Goods ABOUT US FAQ Privacy Policy Advertise With Us Newsroom Syndication Terms of Use |
Terms of Use Your use of this site constitutes acceptance of the Terms of Use
Copyright © 2003-2009 ConsumerAffairs.com Inc. All Rights Reserved. The contents of this site may not be republished, reprinted, rewritten or recirculated without written permission. |
|