U.S. Food Safety No Longer Improving

New York Times:

After decades of steady progress, the safety of the nation's food supply is no longer improving. And in the case of salmonella -- the dangerous bacteria recently found in peanuts and pistachios -- infections may be creeping upward, the government reported Thursday.

In 2008, 16 out of 100,000 people in the United States had laboratory-confirmed cases of salmonella infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That translates into about 48,000 serious illnesses, since individual stool samples are sent to labs generally only when someone is suffering a severe bout. In 2005, the figure was 14 people per 100,000 -- or about 42,000 cases of laboratory-confirmed salmonella infections.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[batguano]

cont....

The profit motive, control of food production & seeds is behind the Codex & the supposed "food Safety" bills now before Congress have serious flaws, perhaps intentional. One only has to look at how these same agencies, “treaties”, corporate interests & their government supporters are protecting our lives & future at present to see the truth of this. If these bills are really about food safety, they should be revised to name agri-business practices that undermine our food quality as dangers, and name and exclude farms under a certain size, and protect by name organic farming practices. The Bush admn gutted the agencies responsible for our health and food safety and this knee-jerk response is not the best way to address legitimate concerns, without empowering corporate “farming”.

Silence=Death & Slavery

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=12717

http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/03/27-0

http://www.thenhf.com/codex_76.htm

[batguano]

If anyone thinks the agri-business/chemical conglomerate is concerned primarily with the health of either people or our planet, I have a lightly used bridge to sell you. HR 875, as written, & other “food-safety” bills, as well as the Codex Alimentarius have food production control & vast profit as their primary goals; if the intent was other, they would have used different language and included Organic/small farm representatives and advocates in crafting them.

The use of millions of tons of non-organic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides & fungicides, as well as GM seeds/crops are the real danger to health of individuals, water quality, sustainable agriculture into the future. Native/ local farming & seed/genetic diversity are at stake in this fight, and GM seeds have abused the law already. Pollution from runoff of the millions of tons of fertilizers & killer "cides" are destroying our sustainable fisheries industry, sport fishing, killing our bays, estuaries, fresh water lakes and rivers; poisoning our water.

The chemical/agri-business industry is in this for profit & has enormous power/influence to get what they want; monopoly. Instead of promoting non-sustainable food production methods in the hands of agri-business & "traders" that are in it for profit, we should be promoting diversified, local organic & sustainable agriculture & the preservation of seed/genetic diversity and a small/local agriculture.....cont

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-875

[dirtfarm]

It's old news, but bears repeating. If you want safe food, grow it or know the source. If you don't know where it came from, eat at your own peril. If you don't have room for a garden, your local community has a garden, somewhere. If they don't, help start one.

[quantumspin]

This is because the U.S. is now a 3rd world nation--- no one checks food quality/safety in 3rd world nations. Wait a year or so and we will be clamoring for any food we can get, no matter where it comes from.

[Rog49Thomas]

another achievement of former president pan and the delusional government is bad. the market is always good ideilogy

as the new head of the ny fed said

self regulation is to regulation what self importance is to importance

[Witchitalineman]

And when was it ever improving?

[bluguy8]

This isn't news. You would have to be stupid to think the FDA was out for our good . They basically don't give a s****>

[Rog49Thomas]

How sad you don't have faith in our form of government.

The FDA is doing a fine job protecting those they are supposed to protect: the drug companies and big agriculture.

[StephenJK]

The FDA and the US Government at large cannot be trusted to serve our best interests. If the bankster bailout isn't enough to open your eyes, just look at A) Water Fluoridation, B) Rocket Fuel in Baby Formula, in the ground water and consequently in our meat products, C)Salmonella and D) take your pick of ridiculous statements from the FDA and EPA about "SAFE LEVELS" of any RANDOM corporate TOXIC WASTE in our water or food supply.

Welcome to CORPORATISM

[All in All]

Even a one man team can be bad; not worth trusting and not doing what's good for the public interest..... so please stop the same old divide & remain ignorant lines (talking points).

I agree that the FDA & Government has been neglecting this issue, however it has nothing to do with the size of the Government!

[StephenJK]

What sense are you trying to make? I am completely missing your point. Are you referring to the "AT LARGE" portion of my commentary? If so, you might want to familiarize yourself with the phrasology "AT LARGE". It means "as a whole" or "complete".

[blimie]

I am more afraid of corporate food and corporate farming. Just take a look at the average American. Not a picture of health. Keep organic and locally grown food.

[themoviepi1984]

Indeed, this is such a HUGE topic yet see the ignorance and lack of care from everybody. because 95% of people are hooked on GMO death food. sprayed "safe" food, ha. what a joke. Its so sad the fear the FDA and lobby with monsanto killing the samll organic farmers

[october2009]

Notice the words: "Grown, prepared and consumed locally" in the article...

With the monumental rise in personal home vegetable gardening, millions of people are discovering the benefits of growing their own fruits and vegetables at home.

It's obvious that the big agribusiness industry doesn't want to lose market share from people growing their own food, so they're using the government's FDA to create a fear campaign in hopes to issue new regulations that will make it expensive or outright ban the people from growing their own food. The big corporations want the government to make regulations, so that the little guy can't compete againt them.

When you think about it, corporations have a huge incentive to buy out our government, because our government is the only entity that can legally force us to do things against our will. Corporations can't force us to buy their products, but government can create regulations that make it hard if not impossible to compete against the big special interests... It's government regulations that indirectly creates "too big to fail-type" companies by eliminating competition.

It's the oldest trick in the book. Corporations use our government for marketing campaigns and market domination... I hope people wake up this terrible scam.

[Beamreach]

Duh! You think it could be because Bush gutted the agencies in charge of food safety/ inspections? If President Obama can just restore these agencies, I don't think we need new legislation. We just need more inspectors and less self-reporting.

[marxmarv]

Seems there's a big pro-HR875 push in the media right now, which alone might be enough to justify pushing back.

[totaldisbelief]

backed by Monsanto ; which is the corporation most responsible for Gene - Modified seeds ;hence GM food. It's not nice to fool with Mother Nature.

[bigsexyshaq]

I BLAME OBAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ravenback47]

I blame President Obama too -- for telling the American people just how bad off we are. Another mess from Bush to clean up. Instead of keeping a counter on how many campaign promises were kept or broken by the President, we should keep a tally of how many problems left by Bush, President Obama has to clean up. I have never seen a former president that left so much undone and not taken care of.

[bluguy8]

and what country were you living in for the past 8 years . Its all because of Bush- get over it

[StephenJK]

It's a systemic problem that transcends party affiliation. PERIOD! Our government only cares about one thing: CORPORATE PROFITS

MODERN DAY FASCISM

[GinaGreen]

Please oppose bills HR 875, HR 759, HR 814, S 425. These bills would industrialize all farms, eliminate most of our farmers (as similar legislation is doing in the EU now), and threaten biodiversity and organic seeds, our means to avoid GMOs. The bills are immense in reach (gardens and homes are not excluded), vague in detail, draconian in penalties (applied by "the Administrator," with no judicial review.)  "Food safety" bills now in Congress were written by Anne Venemann, former Monsanto counsel, and by the WTO (composed of Monsanto, Cargill, Tysonsetc.).
 They were introduced by Rosa DeLauro, whose husband works for Monsanto, and Food Democracy Now says that Michael Taylor, former Monsanto lawyer who approved rBGH, wants a job inside the White House running "food safety."  HR 759 overhauls the entire structure of the FDA and contains provisions that could will problems for small farms and food processors.
H.R. 814 a mandatory animal identification system. H.R. 875, 111th Congress Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 will criminalize seed banking and allow for Monsanto to take control of all seeds in the US. There is plenty of evidence that one-size-fits-all regulation only tends to work only for the largest industrialized operations. These food safety proposals will deconstruct all of the farming: organic, and sustainable practices that make diversified, organic, and direct market producers. WealreadyhaveFoodSafetylegislationwejustneedtoenforceit.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Monsanto-s-dream-bill-HR-by-Linn-Cohen-Cole-090309-337.html

[bluguy8]

This isn't true--read the damn bill. this bill doesn't hurt small companies at all. Its going after the big ones. You must work for Monsanto--their scared

[typicalpol]

More media manipulation and tactics by the major food corp lobbies to SCARE people into relinquishing more control of food sources.