Senator Boxer: Don't Retreat on Food Safety

October 15, 2007

The safety of the food we eat remains a top priority of mine as we move forward on considering the reauthorization of the Farm Bill this year.  We have all watched the stream of headlines announcing tainted spinach, lettuce, hamburger and other problems.  We must do a better job of inspecting and ensuring the safety of all food.

It is for this reason that I am working to oppose a dangerous provision in the House-passed Farm Bill that would eliminate federal meat and poultry food safety protections that have been in place for 40 years. 

Under current federal law, meat and poultry inspected by state inspectors may only be sold within that particular state. But all meat and poultry that crosses state lines must be certified by federal officials.

If the House provision becomes law, meat and poultry plants could choose to forgo federal inspection in favor of more lax and uneven state-run inspections - putting the health and safety of millions of Americans at risk.  Without proper safety protections, meat and poultry products can become contaminated with a host of pathogens, including BSE (mad cow disease), E.coli, and Listeria.  And in the future, avian flu is likely to become another concern.

The USDA Inspector General has said that state programs are “weak in policing plant sanitation.”  There are examples of state-led inspection efforts being lax and improper.  Allowing uneven and lax state standards to replace a uniform federal standard is not appropriate. It is irresponsible.  The House provision would also hinder efforts to move quickly and efficiently to get tainted meat or poultry products off the market before they make people sick because states cannot have limited authority to recall contaminated products.

In truth, we need to make serious efforts to improve food inspections and safety.  But the goal should not be to simply turn inspections over to state governments.  You can count on me to work with my colleagues in Congress to oppose such language in the final Farm Bill.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

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