U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-Calif.) has called for an independent review of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) meat and poultry inspection system, citing the recent recall of approximately 864,000 pounds of beef possibly contaminated with E. coli. Issued by a Montebello, Calif.-based meat packing company, the recall involved ground beef products identified by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) during a recent food safety assessment. In addition, FSIS reportedly flagged some 2008 products based on the establishment’s records. According to DeLauro, an independent board would “support and advise USDA, ensure that the inspection process is rigorous and scientifically robust, and recommend changes to any practices that are insufficiently protecting our food supply.” She further opined that this latest incident, which involved products produced almost two years ago, “is a glaring indication that the current inspection system for meat and poultry is inherently flawed and not sufficient to protect the…
Category Archives U.S. Government and Regulatory Agencies
Scientists and others objecting to the use of recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to stimulate milk production in dairy cows have reportedly resubmitted a petition to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) challenging the new animal drug application approval for an rBGH drug. FDA apparently failed to respond to the original petition, filed in 2007. The petition also requests that dairy products made from cows treated with rBGH be labeled with a health-hazard warning. The petitioners include Samuel Epstein, chair of the Cancer Prevention Coalition; Ronnie Cummins, national director, Organic Consumers Association; Arpad Pusztai, a consultant biologist from Scotland; and Jeffrey Smith, executive director, Institute for Responsible Technology. They claim that rBGH milk poses major cancer and other risks to the U.S. population and that the drug has toxic effects on cows. See World-Wire.com, January 15, 2010.
The American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) has responded to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) recent review of bisphenol A in food contact applications, praising regulators for stopping short of a ban on the ubiquitous chemical but criticizing their concern for “hypothetical and non-existent health risks.” FDA has stated that it now shares the National Toxicology Program’s outlook on “the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland in fetuses, infants, and young children,” and is considering a more aggressive oversight approach. To this end, the agency may seek new authority to govern BPA and its different formulations through the Food Contact Notification Program created in 2000. This regulatory framework not only requires manufacturers to provide detailed analysis on substance applications, but allows FDA to “quickly protect the public by revoking the use through a notice in the Federal Register.” Noting that BPA was first…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Marketing Service has issued a proposed rule that would amend the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (National List) to reflect the recommendations of the National Organic Program Board (NOPB). The National List “identifies the synthetic substances that may be used and the nonsynthetic (natural) substances that may not be used in organic production,” as well as identifying “synthetic, nonsynthetic nonagricultural and nonorganic agricultural substances that may be used in organic handling.” The proposed rule would alter the National List to “amend the annotation for one exempted material (tetracycline) and add one substance (sulfurous acid) for use in organic crop production.” AMS will accept comments on the proposed rule until March 15, 2010. See Federal Register, January 12, 2009.
The American Soybean Association has reportedly submitted comments expressing concerns about agribusiness concentration to the Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in response to their recent initiative on competition and regulatory issues in the agriculture industry. According to ASA President Rob Joslin, “In recent years, we have seen increased consolidation in various agricultural industries. Many farmers have questioned why high levels of concentration have not been more thoroughly reviewed and analyzed by the federal government to determine their impact on competition.” See Southeast Farm Press, January 11, 2010. The agencies announced that they would be holding a number of joint public workshops to explore these issues in a November 2009 news release. Discussions about issues for crop farmers, “including seed technology, vertical integration, market transparency and buyer power” will take place in Ankeny, Iowa, on March 12, 2010; production contracts, concentration and buyer power in the poultry industry…
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a notice seeking public comments on a proposed set of self-regulatory guidelines submitted by i-SAFE, Inc. under the safe harbor provision of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule. Comments must be submitted by March 1, 2010. The organization that prepared the proposed guidelines is a non-profit that for some years has partnered with industry to provide educational programs for children about online safety issues. It recently determined that it would become involved in assisting and licensing online “operators” with children’s online privacy issues. Among other matters, the i-Safe guidelines would (i) provide notice to parents about the information collected from children by i-Safe licensees, (ii) require verifiable parental consent for the collection of personal information from children; and (iii) provide parents with an opportunity to view the information collected and prevent its further dissemination. See Federal Register, January 13, 2010. In recent years,…
The New York Times recently published an investigative report that questions the safety of beef processed with ammonia to kill E. coli and Salmonella. According to the article, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has exempted one company, Beef Products Inc. (BPI), from routine testing requirements since 2007 because the processor apparently claimed that its ammonia treatment destroyed pathogens “to an undetectable level.” A supplier for fast-food chains and the school lunch program, BPI also purportedly indicated that its ammoniated trimmings, when mixed with untreated meat, would sterilize ground beef. “Given the technology, we firmly believe that the two pathogens of major concern—E. coli O157:H7 and salmonella—are on the verge of elimination,” BPI founder Eldon Roth allegedly told USDA in 2001. “But government and industry records obtained by The New York Times show that in testing for the school lunch program, E. coli and salmonella pathogens have been found dozens…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Food Safety and the Agricultural Marketing Service have announced a January 13, 2010, public meeting in Washington, D.C., to provide information and receive comments on draft U.S. positions to be discussed at the 9th Session of the Codex Committee on Milk and Milk Products (CCMMP) February 1-5 in Auckland, New Zealand. Agenda items include discussion of the draft amendment to the fermented milks standard, draft standard for processed cheese and purported inconsistencies in food additive provisions. See Federal Register, January 8, 2010.
Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) has responded to the recent recall of 248,000 pounds of blade-tenderized steaks by urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) “to require labeling that clearly identifies mechanically tenderized beef and pork products for all processing facilities, retailers and consumers.” USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued the Class I recall after concluding that beef products originating from an Owasso, Oklahoma, establishment might be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, FSIS apparently determined “that there is an association between non-intact steaks (blade tenderized prior to further processing) and illnesses in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, South Dakota and Washington.” See FSIS Recall Notice, December 24, 2009. According to DeLauro, however, “USDA has been aware of the E. coli risks associated with mechanically tenderized steaks as early as 1999, but has refused to act.” She has also chided the Obama…
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has prepared a report for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that purportedly catalogs “some of the most egregious examples of false claims, ingredient obfuscations, and other labeling shenanigans” on the part of food manufacturers that make nutritional claims about their products. Titled “Food Labeling Chaos,” the report discusses health claims made by manufacturers of breakfast cereals, beverages, snacks, and baby food. CSPI praises FDA for taking more aggressive action under the Obama administration against food manufacturers that purportedly mislabel their products, but still calls for a significant overhaul of the nation’s food labeling regulations.
