Food Safety Working Group Announces New Standards to Reduce E. Coli, Salmonella Outbreaks
The Food Safety Working Group (FSWG) created by President Barack Obama (D) has unveiled a “new, public health-based approach to food safety based on three core principles: prioritizing prevention; strengthening surveillance and enforcement; and improving response and recovery,” according to a July 7, 2009, White House press release. Chaired by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack, FSWG has set in motion several new strategies to advance these principles, including plans to (i) tighten standards governing the safety of eggs, poultry and turkey; (ii) increase inspections at beef facilities; (iii) issue new industry guidance for leafy greens, melons and tomatoes; (iv) build a trackback and response system incorporating “clearer industry guidance, a new unified command system and improved use of technology to deliver individual food safety alerts to consumers”; and (v) strengthen the organization of federal food safety functions. FSWG has also authorized a new Food and Drug Administration (FDA) position, deputy commissioner of foods, with the power to “restructure and revitalize” efforts to develop a new food safety system. See FoodNavigator-USA.com, Reuters, Associated Press, and Congress Daily, July 7, 2009; The Los Angeles Times, July 8, 2009.
Meanwhile, FDA has already complied with FSWG’s call for new egg safety regulations, issuing a final rule that “requires shell egg producers to implement measures to prevent Salmonella enteritidis (SE) from contaminating eggs on the farm and from further growth during storage and transportation, and requires these producers to maintain records concerning their compliance with the rule and to register with FDA.” A concurrent FDA statement has elaborated that the rule will require egg producers to (i) obtain chicks and young hens only from suppliers who monitor for SE; (ii) “establish rodent, pest control and biosecurity measures to prevent spread of bacteria throughout the farm by people and equipment”; (iii) conduct SE testing in the poultry house, with any positive results triggering eight weeks of required testing and the destruction or diversion of eggs to a non-food use; (iv) “clean and disinfect poultry houses that have tested positive for [SE]”; and (v) “refrigerate eggs at 45 degrees Fahrenheit temperature during storage and transportation no later than 36 hours after the eggs are laid.” In addition, egg producers must maintain “a written [SE] prevention plan and records documenting their compliance.”
FDA expects the new rules to provide “$1.4 billion in annual public health benefits, at an annual cost of $81 million to the regulated industry, or less than 1 cent per dozen eggs produced in the United States.” Producers with at least 3,000 but fewer than 50,000 laying hens must comply with the rule by July 9, 2012, while operations with more than 50,000 laying hens have until July 9, 2010, to achieve compliance. “SE is among the leading bacterial causes of foodborne illness in the United States,” concludes the FDA final rule, which expects to prevent 79,000 illnesses and 30 deaths caused by SE each year. See FDA Press Release and Law360, July 7, 2009; The New York Times, July 8, 2009.
In a related development, both consumer and industry groups have praised the FSWG initiative for closing gaps in the food safety net. The Center for Science in the Public Interest’s (CSPI’s) food safety director, Caroline Smith DeWaal, described the approach as a “good beginning for the Obama Administration,” while Food & Water Watch (FWW) welcomed the “long overdue improvements” in poultry, beef and egg regulations despite cautioning against “one-size-fits-all” standards. The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents the world’s leading food, beverage and consumer products companies, also lauded FSWG for “re-laying the foundation” of the food safety system. “We look forward to working with the Administration and Congress to enact reforms that will improve food safety, boost consumer confidence and address the challenges posed by today’s 21st century food supply,” GMA President and CEO Pamela Bailey was quoted as saying. See CSPI, FWW and GMA Press Releases, July 7, 2009.
