Robert P. Casey Jr.
Sens. Grassley, Casey Introduce Bipartisan Bill on Food Import Safety
December 6, 2007
Source: Daily Report for Executives
By The Bureau of National Affairs
Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) Dec. 5 introduced bipartisan legislation (number not yet available) aimed at ensuring that the U.S. food imports are safe.
Under the legislation, importers who circumvent the U.S. Department of Agriculture's import reinspection system would be subject to civil penalties. Civil penalties would also apply for laboratories and/or importers who knowingly falsify or conspire to falsify laboratory results.
Private laboratories conducting tests on Food and Drug Administration-regulated products on behalf of importers would have to apply for and be certified by FDA pursuant to the bill. FDA would be authorized to develop a certification and audit process for these private laboratories and to collect user fees to cover certification costs.
The legislation would also require that USDA and FDA provide public notice of identified smuggled products in commerce.
Further, under the legislation, the two agencies would have to provide government-issued public notice on recalled food products and to develop searchable recalled products listings on their Web sites.
The so-called EAT SAFE Act would authorize additional funds for personnel and training. Specifically, the legislation would authorize $25 million for FDA and USDA to hire additional personnel to detect and track smuggled food and agricultural products. Additional funds would be authorized for food safety cross training of Department of Homeland Security agriculture specialists ($1.7 million) and agriculture cross training for DHS border patrol agents ($4.8 million).
Casey said in a press statement that ensuring the safety of food products and ingredients now has greater urgency in light of massive recalls of pet food and warnings about the safety of various imported products. Grassley said that the EAT SAFE Act will help give consumers confidence that the imported products available at grocery stores are safe.
