Links to Stenzel testimony and Inspector General report on traceability

We've already published Rep. Rosa DeLauro's opening statement from today's traceability hearing.Passed on by United, here is the link to Tom Stenzel's testimony before Rep. Rosa DeLauro's Ag-FDA approps subcommittee. Meanwhile, here is the link to the Inspector General Report on food traceability.

Look for coverage in The Packer on this story.....

Stenzel started this way.....

As today’s hearing is focused broadly on food traceability, let me discuss three issues with
specific regard to the fresh produce industry.
1. The general state of traceability in the produce industry today, and compliance under the Bioterrorism Act;
2. Major initiatives now well underway within our industry to build streamlined, whole chain traceability for produce; and finally,
3. Some brief thoughts on what may be most appropriate for Congress and FDA moving forward.
Let me begin with this – just as our industry is committed to providing consumers the safest possible foods, we are also committed to ensuring our ability to track fresh produce from the retail store or restaurant back to the farm.

From the Inspector General's report:

For 4 of the 40 products, we could not identify the facilities that likely handled them
For four products—a tomato, a bag of ice, a bottle of fruit juice, and a bottle of water—at least one facility in the food supply chain failed to provide any information about the potential sources of the products. This prevented us from tracing these four products through each stage of the food supply chain back to the farm(s) or the border and from identifying all of the facilities that likely handled the products. In a food emergency, there could be serious health consequences if FDA cannot—at a minimum—identify the facilities that potentially handled
a contaminated food product.