Ensuring a Safe Food Supply

BY Rene Foster-McFarlan RN

The safety of the nations food supply may be in jeopardy if proposed budget cuts are enacted. Last week Cargill was forced to recall 36 million pounds of ground turkey from a plant in Arkansas due to a Salmonella outbreak. The recall is the third largest recall in our nations history and is already linked to one death and 55,000 reported cases of Salmonella. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is responsible for ensuring that the U.S. meat, poultry and egg supply is safe for consumers. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is the public health agency in the USDA that takes on the task of food inspections and in spite of the recent recall will face certain budget cuts that could hamper their ability to quickly respond to outbreaks of food-borne diseases. The recent debt debate while highly politicized does not focus enough attention on the threat that our food supply could face if the proposed cuts take place. The latest recall by Cargill is a clear indication that more attention needs to be given to the role this agency plays in preventing the spread of food-borne infections. Since 1862, when President Abraham Lincoln founded the Bureau of Chemistry, the early precursor of the FSIS, the threat of contamination and the spread of disease have been reduced due to the efforts of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety Committee. The Daily Times reported the "recent Salmonella outbreak was discovered after five months of investigations by federal food inspectors". Investigating and tracking the source of food-borne illnesses is complicated and requires sometimes hundreds of inspectors, scientist, and public health officials to prevent widespread infections. Reducing the number of food inspectors could have a devastating effect on the amount of time needed to track the source of infection and will only lengthen the rate of response times. More attention is needed to this vital public health department and we must all work to ensure that when program cuts are made that they do not place the health of the nation at risk.

References:

The United States Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, About FSIS., 2011. retrieved from http://www.fsis.usda.gov/About_FSIS/Agency_History/index.asp

NOTE: This blog post reflects the work of a Registered Nurse with minor editing by Shirley Comer RN and was completed as a class assignment. The content of this blog is for informational purposes only. Before beginning or changing a treatment or lifestyle regime you should consult your primary health care provider.