Conformity Magazine - August 2008 - (Page 6)

Editor’s Note Another Editorial About the FDA “O ur tomatoes are FDA-approved,” the upbeat waiter told me on a recent visit to a local restaurant. Despite the fact that I love tomatoes and haven’t had any for more than a month now, I politely insist that they leave the tomatoes out of my salad. That’s because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is still struggling to find the causal link between tomatoes and the current salmonella Saintpaul outbreak that has sickened more than 1000 people since April and may be linked to at least one death. And the waiter’s naïve reassurance would be comic if it weren’t so misleading to the public, since the FDA has neither the mandate nor the manpower to “approve” any tomatoes, or to guarantee that a restaurant’s tomatoes are indeed safe. © Suprijono Suharjoto | Dreamstime.com allowing the FDA to initiate mandatory food recalls when voluntary results are not effective. So what’s the problem? As we wrote about in this space in March, a key issue is the FDA’s inability to fulfill its ever-broader mandate in the face of inadequate resources. This dire situation was affirmed in the agency’s own recent internal report, FDA Science and Mission at Risk. (In fact, one of that report’s key conclusions was that “the FDA does not have the capacity to ensure the safety of food for the nation.”) Having a good Food Protection Plan is all well and good but, without the resources to implement it, it’s just a piece of paper. The current salmonella tomato scare follows the nationwide recalls of salmonella-tainted peanut butter in 2007, and E-coli-contaminated spinach in 2006. In each instance, our political leaders pledge to take whatever actions are necessary to ensure the safety of the nation’s food. Unfortunately, nothing seems to change. Albert Einstein was reported to have defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. We can only hope that this time, promises are backed with substantive actions, sufficient funding, and the political will that can make a real difference. Bill von Achen Managing Editor Despite the lack of progress in solving the mystery of the current salmonella outbreak, however, it would be unfair to blame the FDA, either for failing to promptly engage in determining its source, or in identifying food safety as a major concern. Since early June, inspectors have been working overtime to find the source of the contamination. According to a July 11th update from the agency, growers and producers in 43 separate states and 19 Florida counties have been inspected and cleared of not being associated with the outbreak. Further, in a now prescient move, the FDA actually launched in June 2007 a multi-year tomato safety initiative to reduce the incidence of tomato-related food borne illnesses in the United States. That initiative involved inspections of tomato farms and packing facilities to assess food safety practices, and inspectors reportedly began tours of Florida tomato farms just this past April. If the FDA hadn’t already had inspectors on the ground in Florida when the current outbreak began, who knows how much worse it might be. And, just last November, the FDA released a comprehensive Food Protection Plan, focusing on prevention, intervention and response. Among the plan’s provisions are requests for federal legislation mandating food production facilities to renew their FDA registration every two years, authorizing the agency to issue additional preventative controls for certain high-risk foods, and Conformity AUGUSt 2008 http://Dreamstime.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Conformity Magazine - August 2008

Conformity Magazine - August 2008 Contents Editor’s Note FCC Seeks Comment on Reauction of 700 MHz D Block Commission Cracks Down (Again!) on Junk Fax Marketer Canada Levies Fees for Public Safety Radio Spectrum FDA Issues Guidance on Medical Device Tracking Greenpeace Challenges Video Game Manufacturers The IEEE EMC Society: A Proud History of Accomplishments ESD Open Forum An Update on Changes to the Automotive ESD Standard, ISO 10605 Modeling of Radiated Electromagnetic Disturbances in Automotive Applications Design Issues in Automotive Radio Frequency Systems IEEE EMC Symposium IEEE 2008 Show Preview Exhibitors Buyer’s Guide Product News Most Eco-Friendly Companies Updated Standards List For the EU’s Pressure Equipment Directive Commission Issues Updated Standards List For Directive on Gas-Fired Appliances HHS Releases Fact Sheet on U.S. Imports from China Customs Agents Seize Holiday Lights IEEE PSES Symposium Set for October CPSC Actions in the News IEC Standards Update UL Standards Update Telcordia Standards Update From Our “You Can’t Make This Stuff Up” Department Looking Back: Items from Past Issues of Conformity Product Reviews Advertisers

Conformity Magazine - August 2008

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