Schumer: Green Onion E. Coli Debacle Shows FDA Asleep At The Switch -- Even After Recent Outbreaks, Vegetable Processing Plants Still Only Inspected O

Schumer: Green Onion E. Coli Debacle Shows FDA Asleep At The Switch -- Even After Recent Outbreaks, Vegetable Processing Plants Still Only Inspected Once Every 10 Years

With news that the second produce-related E. coli outbreak in just over 2 months has sickened over 200 New Yorkers, today U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called for Federal oversight of the nation's food supply. Two months ago, in the aftermath of the nation's largest E.coli outbreak which sickened 206 people and killed 3 people across 26 states and Canada, it took federal investigators weeks before they could locate the contaminated spinach in California's Salinas Valley. During the investigation, it became increasingly clear that federal efforts to monitor the food supply, track contaminated food, and notify the public are significantly hampered due to jurisdictional tangles, and shortages of manpower and resources at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency responsible for overseeing non-meat food products. Schumer today announced his plans to reintroduce comprehensive food safety legislation that would create a new unified Food Safety Agency that would establish inspection protocols and tracing regulations to protect farms and consumers. Schumer's call comes on the heels of news that though the E. coli outbreak originated over a week ago, the cause of it is still unknown. "Two major E. coli outbreaks in three months have obviously rattled consumer confidence in our nation's food supply" said Senator Schumer. "For decades, we've made a concerted effort to educate Americans on the nutritional importance of eating vegetables and fruits. Today, we must regain their trust by implementing strong safety regulations to protect farms and consumers from another outbreak and to guarantee that our nation's food supply is being adequately monitored." Under current law, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has the responsibility of protecting the nation's meat and poultry supply, while the FDA oversees fruits, vegetables, and other food products. In response to several major E. coli outbreaks in beef in the mid-1990's, the USDA stepped up enforcement efforts, which are credited with reducing the frequency of E. coli outbreaks in meat and poultry.

Unfortunately, FDA oversight has been inadequate in protecting fruits and vegetables from contamination and has dramatically reduced the number of produce inspections. There are less than 2,000 FDA inspectors for over 12,000 facilities, and there are currently over 200 fewer inspectors than there were in 2003. According to the New York Times, produce-related outbreaks of disease rose to 86 in 2004 from 29 in 1997. Adding to the problem is an increased amount of food imports and greater consumption (and wider domestic distribution) of fresh cut fruits and vegetables - intended to be consumed raw, unlike meat products where the bacteria can be killed through proper cooking.

While the USDA conducts thousands of inspections in a matter of days, the number of food inspections conducted by the FDA have dropped from 50,000 in 1972 to less than 4,500 in 2005, leaving U.S. food processors to be inspected only once every 10 years on average. In addition, the USDA requires that all animals be inspected before and after slaughter and that every meat processing plant in the country be inspected daily, while the FDA has no such requirements of the produce industry.

This fractured approach has left the nation's produce vulnerable to contamination. Furthermore, the FDA lacks the power to order recalls. The CDC estimates that as many as 76 million people suffer from food poisoning each year. Of those individuals, approximately 325,000 will be hospitalized and more than 5,000 will die. Children and the elderly are especially vulnerable to foodborne pathogens.

Today, Schumer announced his intention to reintroduce comprehensive food safety legislation that would overhaul federal oversight of the food supply at the start of the next Congress in January. The Food Safety Act (S. 729), authored by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and co-sponsored by Schumer would:

• Make one new federal agency responsible for food safety monitoring. The legislation would give the agency recall authority, require food processing plants to implement procedures to prevent and reduce food contamination, require regular inspection of domestic food facilities with frequency based on risk, and prioritize federal food safety efforts and deployment of resources to achieve the greatest possible benefit in reducing food-borne illness.

• Establish requirements for a national system for tracing food and food producing animals from point of origin to retail sale.

• Establish new, regular inspection protocols for vegetable processing plants.

http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/pressroom/record.cfm?id=266976&&year=2006&