USDA says no change in salmonella tests
Date: 20-Dec-01
Country: USA
Author: Randy Fabi
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman sought to reassure consumers that the
USDA would continue testing for salmonella after a landmark decision
last week by a federal appeals court.
That ruling found the USDA had overstepped its authority in suspending
federal inspections at a Supreme Beef Processors Inc. plant in Texas
after it failed a series of salmonella tests. Withdrawing government
inspectors, who authorize the USDA approval stamp on meat products,
effectively closes a U.S. meat plant.
Consumer groups say the court ruling removed the USDA's most potent tool
to get meat processors to clean up their product.
Salmonella can cause vomiting, diarrhea and fever in healthy adults and
can be fatal for elderly people or those with weak immune systems. About
600 Americans die from salmonella annually out of 1.4 million cases,
according to federal health data.
Veneman said the USDA could still pull meat inspectors out of a plant,
but would do so only after taking other steps first.
"This ruling does not impair our ability to close plants that do not
meet the statutory and regulatory requirements of the law for processing
meat and poultry," Veneman said in a statement.
"We can and will shut down plants that do not meet that responsibility."
PLAN CRITICIZED
Veneman said if a plant flunked the salmonella tests, federal inspectors
would first identify vulnerabilities in a plant's food safety system and
make recommendations for improvements. If a company failed to follow
through, the USDA could then withdraw its inspectors.
The USDA said it would also review current federal food safety
regulations and training procedures for USDA plant inspectors.
Food safety activists said USDA's new actions would do little to protect
public health because the government would take much longer to identify
a company's food safety program.
"The court blew a gaping hole in the safety system in the meat and
poultry system. And USDA is trying to use a little Band-Aid to patch it
up," said Carol Tucker Foreman of the Consumer Federation of America.
Foreman said the USDA should make public the name and addresses of meat
plants that fail salmonella tests so consumers "can avoid eating their
products."
The federal government for years has grappled with ways to lower
salmonella contamination in beef and poultry processing plants, where
animal feces can sometimes come in contact with meat, spreading the
bacteria.
On Wednesday, Iowa Senator Tom Harkin and Illinois Senator Dick Durbin,
both Democrats, will join former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman and
12 consumer groups to urge broader USDA authority to ensure a safe meat
supply.
