Don't blame it on Milton

This link to a blog about food safety comes from KSU's Doug Powell and the Food Safety Network. The blog author is Jacob Grier, self described as " a barista, bartender, close-up magician, and freelance writer loosely associated with the libertarian policy scene in Washington, DC."

In his criticism of a Time magazine column by Paul Krugman, Grier cites this passage by Krugman.

The Bush administration won’t issue food safety regulations even when the private sector wants them. The president of the United Fresh Produce Association says that the industry’s problems “can’t be solved without strong mandatory federal regulations”: without such regulations, scrupulous growers and processors risk being undercut by competitors more willing to cut corners on food safety. Yet the administration refuses to do more than issue nonbinding guidelines.

Grier writes this in response:

Citing this as evidence displays an astonishing degree of ignorance from a professional economist. When existing industry players call for supposed public interest regulation, that should immediately send up a red flag that what they really want is to squeeze out potential competitors. Strict regulations will almost certainly put up barriers to entry in the food industry. Whether they’ll actually make things safer is far less obvious. At no point does Krugman explain what regulations he’d like to see put in place, how they’ll deal with imported food, and whether or not they’ll be cost effective.


TK: Are food safety outbreaks a failure of the markets or a failure of regulation? Or do lawyers share some blame? Buyers, lawyers and government are all trying to atone for those failures now. United's call for government oversight is still a matter of great interest and amazement, as evidenced by Krugman and Grier.