On Tuesday, the Obama administration announced a new rule to deal with the safety of eggs, a rule many see as over twenty years in the making. For New York Times story, click here. The story highlights the twenty year odyssey when researchers discovered the connection between salmonella and eggs to the proposed rule announced on Tuesday.
The rules are seen by many to be more aspirational than actual.
The Agriculture Department promised to develop new standards to reduce salmonella levels in chickens and turkeys by the end of the year. The Food and Drug Administration promised to advise the food industry by the end of the month on how to prevent contamination of tomatoes, melons, spinach and lettuce. And within three months the F.D.A. plans to release advice about how farmers, wholesalers and retailers can build systems to trace contaminated foods quickly from shelf to field.Acccording to one industry official,
“We’ve got to move to mandatory regulatory standards, and this is a step along the way,” said Michael Taylor, a food specialist who is a senior adviser at the food and drug agency.Finally at a White House news conference yesterday, Vice-President Biden, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced the steps towards overhauling the nation’s food safety regulations. For Washington Post story, click here.
To read a recent post on this issue, click here.
Posted: 07/08/09
