House could still prove stumbling block for food safety bill
The House passed a companion bill, the Food Safety Enhancement Act in July 2009, but despite the Senate version’s passage with a bipartisan 73-25 vote, there is little time available in the current congressional lame-duck session for the two chambers to wrangle over the details of a final version.
Both versions of the legislation attempt to shift from cracking down on unsafe foods after they get to market, toward preventing them from reaching store shelves. They would give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to order recalls, rather than simply request them as it does now; greater access to companies food safety records; and would require food manufacturers to keep detailed food safety plans.
President Barack Obama said in a statement: “We are one step closer to having critically important new tools to protect our nation’s food supply and keep consumers safe. This legislation ensures more frequent inspections of food manufacturing facilities and will require these facilities to take preventative actions to reduce the risks of outbreaks and foodborne illness.”
He urged the House to act quickly on the bill.
The House version of the legislation, which passed last year, included more money for FDA inspections, fees for food manufacturers, and tougher penalties for manufacturers that violate the law, all of which were eliminated in the Senate version.
Consumer advocacy group the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) welcomed the bill but also said that Congress needs to act quickly to resolve differences and pass a final version.
CFA’s distinguished fellow in food policy Carol Tucker-Foreman said: “Food safety reform isn’t finished yet. Differences in the House and Senate bills have to be resolved quickly so a final bill can be sent to the President. Time is very short but it can be done. The bills have some differences in language and resources required but they share identical goals and framework.”
Meanwhile, the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) applauded Senators for moving the bill forward and also urged the House to swiftly follow suit.
GMA president Pamela Bailey said: “We applaud the Senate for passing S. 510, The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act – this landmark legislation provides FDA with the resources and authorities the agency needs to help strengthen our nation’s food safety system by making prevention the focus of our food safety strategies.”
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) highlighted what it referred to as “weakening compromises” in the bill, including the recent exemption for smaller businesses and reductions in the frequency of inspections.
Nevertheless, CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson said: “Everyone who eats will benefit from this historic legislation…Preventing contamination in the first place is paramount to reducing the health care and economic costs that are caused when unsafe food makes people sick.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in four Americans falls ill due to foodborne pathogens each year, 375,000 are hospitalized, and about 5,000 die.
