Milling & Baking News - December 30, 2008 - 14

Industry Activities

Food industry may feel brunt of
F.D.A. effort to regain credibility
WASHINGTON - Tougher, more intransigent and difficult to work with.
That is what the baking industry should
expect in 2009 and beyond from the
Food and Drug Administration, according to top attorneys at the Washington
law firm of Covington and Burling. Attorneys from the firm participated in a
Dec. 16 conference call on behalf of the
American Bakers Association.
Attorneys from the firm, which has
worked with the A.B.A. for many years,
offered a 2009 Washington outlook.
Partners Peter Barton Hutt and Miriam
J. Guggenheim led the discussion.
Mr. Hutt said the more challenging
F.D.A. interactions are the result of a
number of highly publicized scandals
ranging from melamine to Vioxx.
"They are trying to regain their credibility," Mr. Hutt said.
Ms. Guggenheim noted that food
safety was on the Government

Accountability Office list of the top 13 issues facing President-elect Obama and
the next Congress. While this gives an
indication that the issue is important, she
said not all items on the list were equal.
For example, she said food safety
certainly would not gain the same
level of attention as "Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan," another
single item on the list.
With the likely exit of Senator Edward Kennedy as chairman of the Senate Committee
on Health, Education, Labor
and Pensions, Senator Tom
Harkin of Iowa is likely to fill the position, Ms. Guggenheim said. She said the
change could have implications for the
baking industry.
"Senator Harkin is a longtime supporter of increased F.D.A. oversight of
nutrition," she said.
Because the prevalence of obesity will

A.B.A. adjusts, expands group
dealing with commodity policy
WASHINGTON - A little more than a
year after reviving its Commodity Task
Force, the American Bakers Association
has expanded the number of members
involved in the effort and designated the
group the Commodity and Agricultural
Policy Committee.
Robb MacKie, A.B.A. president and
chief executive officer, said he was "very
pleased" with the progress the task force
has made on commodity related issues.
"Under the leadership of David Brown,
this committee has been able to lead the
way in improving commodity market and
agricultural policy, as well as play a key
role in educating Congress, the public and

media on important issues that impact the
baking industry," Mr. MacKie said.
The announcement coincided with a
dramatic commodity market rally in recent
days. The task force had been reestablished
because of the extraordinary market volatility prevailing over the past two years.
Mr. Brown, who is vice-president of
commodities, bakery, Sara Lee Corp., was
chairman of the task force and will head the
committee. He said the change will allow
the A.B.A. to better organize its efforts.
"We will not only continue our current efforts to improve commodity and
agricultural policy and address market
volatility, but we will be able to better

U.S.D.A. announces $212 million for
Food for Progress in fiscal 2009
WASHINGTON - Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer on Dec. 17 announced
plans for $212 million in international
assistance under Food for Progress in the
current fiscal year. The commodity donations will benefit more than 7.5 million
people in 13 countries in Africa, Asia,
Latin America and the Middle East.
"Food for Progress has consistently
helped developing countries advance
economic reform and expand private
14 / December 30, 2008

Milling & Baking News

enterprise," Mr. Schafer said. "We have
done a world of good, providing electrical power for rural families in the Philippines and training hundreds of school
teachers in Mozambique, and with today's announcement, we will continue to
do much more."
Allocations announced by the secretary
included more than 280,000 tonnes of U.S.
wheat and wheat flour, soybean and vegetable oil, soybean meal and yellow corn

continue to attract attention and concern
in the media and Washington, bakers
will be able to take advantage of opportunities to promote the nutritional qualities of whole grain and enriched products. At the same time, Ms. Guggenheim
urged bakers to be cautious with regard
to sweet goods - the product lines and
how they are marketed. She also suggested the A.B.A. work aggressively
to preemptively educate congressional members before a food
safety crisis.
"You don't want legislation
that is a rash response to an incident," she said.
The attorneys also discussed labor issues, including card check legislation; the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the potential reemergence of ergonomics rules; energy and
the environment, subjects described as
"joined at the hip;" and transportation.
A full transcript of the conference
call may be purchased from the American Bakers Association. MBN

involve more members of the baking industry to participate in this process," he
said. "Our efforts will be visibly magnified
due to this growth within the committee."
Others joining the committee include Jim
Schick, director of procurement for Ralcorp
Inc., who will serve as vice-chairman of the
committee; Mark Worthey, vice-president
of procurement with Flowers Foods, who
will serve as a liaison for the committee
with the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission agricultural advisory committee; Keith Krause, vice-president of procurement at McKee Foods, who will lead
the sweetener policy subcommittee; and
Hayden Wands, director of procurement
with Sara Lee Corp., who will be liaison to
the A.B.A. Food Technical and Regulatory
Affairs Committee on wheat quality and
biotechnology issues. MBN
that will be purchased on the U.S. market
and donated by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. The commodities will go to
private voluntary organizations and foreign governments that will implement agricultural and rural development projects
while helping to address food shortages.
The development projects are funded by
sales of the donated U.S. commodities
within the recipient countries.
Food for Progress provides U.S. agricultural commodities to developing countries
and emerging democracies committed to
introducing and expanding free enterprise
in the agricultural sector. MBN
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - December 30, 2008

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