FDA’s food protection plan: one-year report
December 1, 2008
The FDA has just produced a summary of the first-year accomplishments of the food protection plan it announced a year ago. According to the New York Times, FDA officials say their overhaul of the food safety system is right on track (for a summary, see consumeraffairs.com). Skeptical? Join Congressional representative Rosa De Laura (Dem-CT) who says of the FDA: “It’s got to be so totally redone…It needs resources; it needs better management; it needs less influence from the industry and more influence on the science.” Single food safety agency, anyone?
Here’s what Consumers’ Union has to say about the plan, starting with “the FDA needs a complete overhaul.”
“Single food safety agency, anyone?”
Here!
Comment by Bix — December 2, 2008 @ 6:29 am
What if the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cdc.gov had the authorization and the resources to be the one government agency involved with dis-ease control and prevention as these relate to specific foods and to nutrition?
Since their mission clearly involves health, not promoting agri-industry, the most likely affect is that any information from the CDC about food choices would be much more likely to revolve around health than around industry-approved messages.
Since we know the USDA has its goals in other areas completely conflictory with providing science-based, quality nutrition information, why do we continue to get poor advice via industry/lobbyist approved Pyramid Schemes thrown to the public every few years?
Comment by Daniel Ithaca,NY — December 2, 2008 @ 8:51 am
one example:
http://www.pcrm.org/news/health001206.html
Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has forfeited its right to appeal a recent court decision that found
it violated federal law for hiding conflicts of interest on an important dietary advisory committee.
The U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee was responsible for revising the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the basis for most nutritional advice in America. (article continues)
Comment by Daniel Ithaca,NY — December 2, 2008 @ 8:57 am
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
would then be not just dealing with such issues of food safety as in food-borne illness & contamination, like the FDA does, but also with giving basic nutrition information so that people are not so confused of how to follow a healthy diet.
Comment by Daniel Ithaca,NY — December 2, 2008 @ 1:14 pm
[…] Heckuva job, brownnosies: The FDA declares it’s doing awesomely on improving food safety. (Consumer Affairs via What to Eat) […]
Pingback by The Ethicurean: Chew the right thing. » Blog Archive » Digest - News: Ritchie for AgSec, Kansas kraziness, and the FDA gets an…autopat? — December 7, 2008 @ 2:58 am