No jurisdiction
I was visiting the offices of the Farm Bureau this afternoon and had a chance to visit with Ron Gaskill, Tara Smith and Rebecca Freeman about various topics, including the farm bill, the EPA, methyl bromide, produce safety and more.
When we talked about federal oversight of produce safety at the farm level, Gaskill said the Farm Bureau is opposed to federal regulation. He said FDA guidance is acceptable, but he argued that FDA has no statutory authority to regulate at the grower level. I have never heard the argument framed in those terms, and I want to look up the authorizing language for more clarity on this issue. While FDA has oversight over produce from the distributor onward, Gaskill said FDA authority at the grower level is a "gray area." More to come on this...
Meanwhile, Gaskill said Sen. Tom Harkin's draft food safety legislation - mostly consisting of recycled language from a 1999 bill - will simply serve as a marker bill to make sure Harkin has influence in possible food safety legislation developed in the Senate.
Labels: Farm Bill, FDA, Harkin, methyl bromide, Tom Harkin
posted by Tom Karst @ 1:43 PM
1 Comments:
FDA can go to the farm level.
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FDA's Role in Traceback Investigations for Produce
FDA's role in foodborne outbreak investigations include:
* Assisting in investigation and coordination in multistate outbreaks
* Reviewing epidemiological, laboratory and environmental data with CDC and state/local agencies
* Providing investigational and laboratory assistance, as needed
* Conducting tracebacks of implicated foods and removal from the market
* Monitoring recalls
* Taking other appropriate regulatory actions
* Identifying how the food became contaminated at its source (such as the farm, in the case of produce)
* Evaluating data from investigation findings to identify trends and make recommendations to prevent similar problems...
(the "take appropriate regulatory action" language may considered a mandate.)
Source:
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/prodtra2.html
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