Testing produce for deadly pathogens: nothing but another wasteful government program.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

The House Republicans' war on food safety continues. As reported in the Chicago Tribune, the House recently voted to kill the USDA's Microbiological Data Program (MDP), a 10-year-old program that tests produce for a wide variety of pathogens, including the strain of E. coli that caused the deadly outbreak in Germany. Every year, the MDP screens around 15,000 samples of produce the agency considers particularly vulnerable to contamination, such as sprouts, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cantaloupe, and cilantro, for pathogens, including salmonella and multiple strains of E. coli. If anything is found, the information is passed on to the FDA, which can then institute a recall. Significantly, the MDP represents a much broader testing regime than the FDA's own, which only manages to screen 1,000 samples a year.

Despite the fact that positive tests out of the MDP have led to 19 recalls in the last two years, the produce lobby has been agitating for some time to kill it as another one of those onerous, wasteful, and "duplicative" government programs. The Tribune references a memo written this spring by the produce lobby and sent to USDA Chief Tom Vilsack laying out these arguments, and it appears the House GOP decided to act on them.

This battle gets to the problematic and Byzantine nature of our food safety laws. One of the industry's objections is that the MDP is run by the USDA's marketing service, the arm of the agency responsible for promoting U.S. agricultural products. While the program was partly intended to demonstrate the safety of American produce, there's no denying that it's now used as part of U.S. food safety enforcement protocol. In the eyes of industry, that's bad for business.

In fact, by law it's the FDA that's in charge of produce safety. But somehow, the only entity actually testing for new, deadly strains of E. coli and salmonella is the one that's supposed to encourage consumers to buy more produce.

Indeed, the MDP's $4.5 million budget is minuscule in the grand budgetary scheme of things; this clearly has little to do with saving money. While it's worth considering if the program should be moved intact under the FDA's authority, under no circumstances can one legitimately argue that we're better off not testing for killer bugs in our veggies -- just ask the families of those who lost loved ones to the German E. coli outbreak caused by contaminated sprouts. Only the twisted logic of corporate lobbyists can do that -- aided by legislators too blinded by their influence to see the dangerous game they play.

http://www.grist.org...od-safety-again

[mawilson 2,133]

$4.5 million? Republicans are such аssholes.

[slim 1,525]

I don't eat produce. I'm a carnivore.

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

I don't eat produce. I'm a carnivore.

I hope you eat alot of oily fish then. Red meat is bad for you in large quantities.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Republicans are such аssholes.

You just figured that out?

[mawilson 2,133]

You just figured that out?

Not really.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Not really.

I know. It was more of a rhetorical question.

[mawilson 2,133]

I know. It was more of a rhetorical question.

Democrats are not much better. They'd rather stick their heads in the sand and pretend

there's no problem than try to do anything about it.

Edited July 6, 2011 by mawilson

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Democrats are not much better. They'd rather stick their heads in the sand and pretend there's no problem than try to do anything about it.

I know how you feel about both parties.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

The key phrase here is "10 year old program..." Somehow it is a "war on food safety" if we go back to the level of food safety we had in 2001. How did we EVER manage to become a world power without this government boondoggle?

The reason that liberals cannot win in the long run is that they have no justifiable purpose for their "programs"...only tht to be against them means you must want to kill people, poison air and water, starve children and old people...yada, yada, yada.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

We WASH the fruits and vegatables that come into this house. Novel idea, I know...doing something for yourself.

[mawilson 2,133]

The key phrase here is "10 year old program..." Somehow it is a "war on food safety" if we go back to the level of food safety we had in 2001.

It is if our food was less safe in 2001.

[slim 1,525]

I hope you eat alot of oily fish then. Red meat is bad for you in large quantities.

Red meat is bad for you in large quantities? Says who?

Next you'll be telling me cigarettes are addictive.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

It is if our food was less safe in 2001.

Is it? If no, why do we need this agency? If yes, ws it bcause of this agency? What did they do to make our food safer? How would it not be safer if they were now eliminated. Cause and affect anaysis.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I hope you eat alot of oily fish then. Red meat is bad for you in large quantities.

Not to mention a high protein diet has rather unpleasant gastro intestinal side effects for you and those around you.