Not in My Food.org : Know what you're eating
Q: What do you call a bill that’s been languishing in the Senate so long it might just die there?
A: The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act
Not exactly the kind of punchline that gets a belly laugh around here, but we appreciate the sentiment in this ‘joke’ that headlines this recent NPR spot.
But food safety advocates are now going public with a message to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that it’s high time to stop stalling and bring the bill to a vote via a targeted ad campaign (PDF) launched this week in Reid’s home state of Nevada. The ad features Rylee Gustafson, a young girl who almost died after eating bagged spinach that was contaminated with E. coli.
In addition, the Make Our Food Safe coalition released poll results this week noting that 82% of Nevadans – independent of political affiliation – support the passage of stronger food safety regulations.
Advocates ran a similar ad in Kentucky (PDF) directed at Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, highlighting University of Kentucky student Lauren Bush who also became critically ill after eating E. coli-tainted spinach.
My name is Harry Hamil. I am one of a small group of those actually producing, packing, distributing and retailing local, healthy food who are working to amend or, if necessary, to defeat this misguided industrial-size-only legislation that will actually reduce the availability of healthy food in America. As best we can tell, I am the only person working on this 40+ hours a week and I volunteer all of my time. I have been doing so for almost a year. I am paid nothing and have spent a couple of thousand of my wife’s and my money advocating our position.
I will happily discuss the actual details of S 510 with anyone.
Unhappily, despite my repeated efforts to discuss the clear impacts of specific provisions of S 510 with those in the Make Our Food Safe coalition (particularly STOP), no one is willing to do so. All they will do is assure me that I’m wrong.
Instead, they appeal in advertisements to the public’s sympathy for a person injured by food s/he has eaten without discussing any details of what they are actually supporting. Furthermore, Consumers Union and other members of the Make Our Food Safe coalition regularly misrepresent reality. For example, since its creation, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act has been amended numerous times to strengthen the regulation of food so it is far from not having been updated. Much of this reputed “modernization” is designed for the global food system NOT evolving local food systems. S 510 is focused on the growing, packing, processing and distribution of fruits and vegetables despite the fact that only 2.2% of all foodborne illness outbreaks from 1990 through 2007 were associated with the growing, packing, processing and shipping of produce. (http://www.foodandfarming.info/docs/386Produce_Analysis_2010_Final.pdf).
S 510 does not address the pressing food safety issues of our time the greatest of which is the failure of the food safety regulators to use their already considerable powers. Instead, they cover their incompetence with pleas about lack of authority.
Much of Eric Schlosser said is clearly false and his analogy to what happened with the banks illustrates the failure of regulators to do their jobs. In fact, the FDA has recently asserted in a lawsuit on the interstate shipment of raw milk that is has all sorts of authority IT IS NOT USING! You can read the US Attorney’s actual brief at http://www.farmtoconsumer.org/litigation/ey100426–ds%20mtd%20memo%20in%20support.pdf.
I will be happy to respond to any question or comment sent to me (healthyfoodcoalition@gmail.com) or call to me at 828/664-0060, 10-6 Monday – Saturday.
And, because of my uncommon name, you can easily research me on the web.
I agree with Harry that FDA has not been doing its job. FDA inspection of food processors has been declining for decades, to a level where it is inspecting food processors on average once every ten years. A major goal of S. 510 it to make certain that FDA does do its job. Thus it requires that FDA inspect high risk food processors annually.
If you refer to this link:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-510
it shows Consumer’s Union on the side of big business that would certainly like to put the little guys out of business. In addition, it claims (along the line of Harry Hamil’s statements) that SB510 would make it illegal to “Share, Trade or Sell Homegrown Food”. This is a definite blow to regional sovereignty. I think this needs to be cleared up by Consumer’s Union.
I am very much against this bill. It is an attempt to make all food nutrient void. Harry Reid and FDA involvement is an indication that special interests are involved, my guess is Monsanto. Reid is trying to ram this bill through using “cloture” where it will not be discussed, just voted on. Most people think that food safety sounds great but what they don’t know is that this is an effort to control the food, thus the people who eat it.
How can anyone support a bill without reading the text.
Blindly asking for support smell of a cover up on true facts.
Local and homegrown products and produce is the future for all.
I want my raw milk, raw cheese, raw food back in stores from locally grown organic farms not corporate giants adding unknown substances to my food for my health.