FDA labs to stay open — for now
By Christie Keith
August 3, 2007
From Congress Daily:
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach said Wednesday he is halting temporarily an agency proposal to close seven of its 13 labs around the country that test food and drugs for safety.
Agency spokeswoman Julie Zawisza said von Eschenbach first wants to consider recommendations from a new Cabinet-level import panel created by the president. The panel is scheduled to make recommendations in September.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has been investigating FDA’s proposal to close the labs.
“Not once, in the 70,000 pages of documents that our subcommittee received from the FDA, does the FDA justify why this reorganization plan makes sense from either a safety or a cost standpoint,” Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Bart Stupak, D-Mich., said Wednesday. “Whether they are closed today or 90 days from now, closing the FDA’s field labs, and consolidating the district offices, which places more power in Washington, makes no sense for America’s food safety.”
Ya think? Full story here.
The FDA, the USDA, the Department of Commerce, …, this White House and Administration don’t give a damn about the health of our pets or our health. They are now negotiating with the Chinese to try to get them to behave better on the lead paint issue. Lead is a poison that our children are now exposed to from toys and kids jewelry from China. This is because the amoral political appointees that run the federal agencies and their boss the President believe free trade with China and other developing countries is more important than our children’s health. What is there to negotiate!!! They believe continued and increased profit for their corporate political benefactors is more important than our lives and our pets’ lives.
If we don’t wake up as a nation and demand that this evil stops, our children will suffer a lifetime of mental retardation and other serious and debilitating illnesses. Our pets will continue to be poisoned. Corporate greed and Administration complicity are out of control - we are a nation of sheep that is being sheered every day!
Comment by MFEMFEM — August 3, 2007 @ 4:18 pm
Very well said. they are going to kill us one way or another.
I bought Lou Dobbs book. It is so interesting. The lobbiest [sp?] are having their way. they want us to buy buy buy from China. they have been lobbying for this for a long time with a lot of big wigs. Even Bush. I would love to know how to stop all this mess.
They have a lot of money behind them, and We all know money talks.
First pets, then us and our babies.
Comment by Trudy Jackson — August 3, 2007 @ 6:05 pm
Can anyone explain why the recall on Lakeside canned green beans, affecting major retailers, i.e., Albertsons, Kroegers, etc. nationwide, was dated today on the FDA home page although the release was dateded 8/1?
Comment by PM Hill — August 3, 2007 @ 7:24 pm
By the way thanks, Christie, for blogging from a sick bed! Hope you recover quickly.
Comment by PM Hill — August 3, 2007 @ 7:28 pm
Hi Christie, hope you recover quickly and getting lots of TLC.
RE: the China mess… I sure hope the citizens of this country wake up soon. I don’t want to see sick children but maybe the lead paint on toys will cause the “soccer moms” to react, especially since everyone thought us pet parents were highly over reactive.
PM Hill: there has been nothing about the green beans or fresh ginger in the newspapers or TV. I happened to see notice of it several days ago on a cooking blog. There is a man in NM with botulissm who can only wiggle his toes. The ginger is contaminated heavily with the pesticide aldicarb?
This whole mess is getting worse instead of better. I had an email from my Congressional Rep. today in response to an email and call made in April! She proceeded to tell me if the house bill comes to a vote she will definitely study it and decide how to vote???
What’s to decide!
Katie
Comment by Katie — August 3, 2007 @ 8:05 pm
Maybe the FDA labs are staying open for now because the administration is too busy trying to keep its illegal and unconstitutional covert warrantless spying (and data mining) on people in this country, including american citizens. I doubt this country has ever seen such a collection of disgusting anti-American “people” running this great country—right into the crapper.
White House Uses Its Own Illegal Conduct To Wage Political Offensive Over FISA Legislation
“… A central reason for the rush to push FISA legislation through Congress was revealed by House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) during an appearance on Fox News earlier this week when he made reference to a secret legal opinion declaring “a key element of the Bush administration’s wiretapping efforts illegal.”
More at http://thinkprogress.org/2007/08/03/fisa-battle/
Comment by sandy — August 3, 2007 @ 11:31 pm
Watched a segment of Bill Moyers’ Journal last night,”Buying the War”. It dealt with the lack of honest journalism and how the administration (and its goonies . . er supporters) convinced the American people about the war in Iraq. It was a powerful piece of investigative journalism and Moyers promises to do more on what the current administration doesn’t want the public to know about. I highly recommend watching it if you can!
Comment by catmom5 — August 4, 2007 @ 6:27 am
a temporary halt to this ill-conceived idea is better than no halt at all. kudos to Bart Stupak.
Comment by explodinghed — August 4, 2007 @ 9:09 am
catmom5 - I saw the Bill Moyers Journal last night too. Great reporting. Charlie Rose is another one of my favorite’s. Two of the best shows on TV. Can’t find truthful, newsworthy reporting on any other station like you can on PBS. We need to keep PBS up and running so, donate away folks! PBS needs our money.
Comment by Barb — August 4, 2007 @ 3:28 pm
Think China’s a problem now? Wait until the “power money mogels” get into Africa. You “ain’t seen nothin’ yet”. There are already movements of billions of dollars from Europe to fund the continent of Africa. If you can imagine a continent full of workers that have never had anything worthwhile to work for, they are going to compete in the world-market with - China. What kind of food problems will we have then.
Comment by VJ — August 4, 2007 @ 6:53 pm
That’s why I have such mixed ideas with respect to “globalization”. I love the idea of providing opportunity across the world markets to populations whose members are in economic difficulty. But I predicate that on the assumption that they will be treated respectfully as workers, and that regulatory controls will be in place and functioning correctly.
Lacking that, it becomes nothing more than exploitation which is what I believe we’re seeing in China and which is what you’re describing as being on its way in Africa.
Globalization WITHOUT exploitation. Until and unless we can do it right, then we shouldn’t do it at all.
Comment by The OTHER Pat — August 5, 2007 @ 8:45 am
It’s all about the money Other Pat. Those in control of the money now will control even more of the world. That is THEIR thinking. Hope sounder
minds prevail.
Comment by VJ — August 5, 2007 @ 10:50 am
Right now globalization is bringing the developing world a huge increase in human trafficking, primarily women and children being forced into the sex trade. It is resulting in a gigantic redistribution of wealth to a very small mega-wealthy class, the destruction of of cultural diversity, and a deterioration in the safety of food and drugs as counterfeits and poisoned drugs and food are spreading throughout the world. A very small middle class is growing in countries like China and India, but much to the detriment of huge rural populations that are sinking into greater poverty and despair. The idealistic dream of globalization has been taken over by the reality of globalized greed and corruption.
Few are benefiting at the expense of the many and it will only get worse. Almost every major credible academic study has show that overall the shift has been great wealth flowing to the few at the expense of the many. Instead of the spread of democracy we are seeing the spread of bandit corporatization.
Comment by MFEMFEM — August 6, 2007 @ 3:07 am
I “think” I heard on the news that there was a bill that passed before congress putting cigarettes under the oversight of the FDA? Anyone else hear this?
Cigarettes are NOT GOOD, but why would they add another workload to an overwhelmed govt. bureaucracy?
Well said, MFEMFEM!
Comment by Elaine — August 6, 2007 @ 11:52 am
This News is sure interesting; Reason to add new labs ,EU faces new melamine contaminated feed
// 06 aug 2007
The last week of July has been marked by several alerts of melamine contaminated feed, according to a overview of the European Commission.
The Rapid Alert System found contaminated rice protein in France, Greece, Spain and Great Britain. In Poland, a batch of contaminated corn gluten had been discovered. All of the feed was imported from China. ( Have we seen this before)
Comment by William Kanitz — August 7, 2007 @ 8:25 am
This is a good opinion piece about fair trade.
http://www.dailyyonder.com:80/.....d-industry
Comment by Elaine — August 7, 2007 @ 9:38 am
House Energy and Commerce Chairman Dingell has laid down his marker for a food safety overhaul at FDA that takes aim at imported food.
http://www.thegate.nationaljou.....fda_mo.php
Comment by Elaine — August 7, 2007 @ 11:48 am
I guess we need to learn to grow our own fruits and vegetables or at least buy locally from farmers markets.
Comment by Julie — August 7, 2007 @ 12:10 pm
I just realized my link about Chairman Dingell did not come through right. I will try again.
http://thegate.nationaljournal.....fda_mo.php
Comment by Elaine — August 7, 2007 @ 1:00 pm
I remember when the denials were floating around that nothing was out of order for pet food ingredients.The testing agencys should be investagated and why FDA tests did not match independents tests.The importers should pay for all testing before products reach our shores,it would save alot of misery. Yes we should eat locally grown as it is safe ,it’s not from CHINA.
Comment by William Kanitz — August 7, 2007 @ 1:38 pm
Here are parts of a story which appeared on the front pages of a number of Canadian newspapers today.
Wary of imported produce, consumers buy locally
MARIAN SCOTT THE GAZETTE
Tuesday Auguest 7, 2007
Spooked by reports of contaminated pet food ingredients, toothpaste, medications and seafood from China, many consumers are wondering what other dangers might lurk on grocery store shelves.
They have reason to worry: Up to 13 million Canadians, more than 40 per cent of the population, will suffer from food-borne illnesses this year, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. Medical experts say that will cost up to $1.3 billion in lost productivity and medical expenses.
E. coli-tainted spinach from the United States, cantaloupes from Costa Rica contaminated with salmonella and pet food containing a toxic chemical imported from China – recent safety scares have raised serious questions about the security of Canada’s food supply and sparked criticism that the government and food industry do not do enough to ensure food imported from other countries is safe.
Some fear the problem will worsen as large and small grocery stores rely increasingly on food grown on foreign soil that Canadian officials might never see or inspect.
“Who’s checking up?” asked Dan McGovern, publisher of Sustainable Food News, an online service for the natural food industry based in Portland, Me.
“In a developing country like China, it’s difficult to assess these things.”
As our groceries become increasingly global, policing the food supply poses daunting challenges. Complicating things even more for consumers is that food-packaging rules can make it difficult even to know when you’re buying imported foods.
A frozen pizza labelled “Product of Canada,” for example, is not necessarily made in this country. The label means only that at least 51 per cent of the product was created in Canada – including processing costs.
Some question whether the new measures will be sufficient to correct China’s long history of health and safety violations.
“China is an emerging industrial nation,” said Jerry Tutunjian, editor of Canadian Grocer, a trade magazine. “It takes years to build in safeguards.”
The Chinese crackdown follows last spring’s massive pet-food recall after products contaminated with melamine, an industrial plastic, killed or sickened thousands of cats and dogs.
Comment by Bill — August 7, 2007 @ 2:05 pm
Large and small grocery stores rely increasingly on food grown on foreign soil that Canadian officials might never see or inspect.
They have no way of knowing unless the are a ScoringAg.com member that has traceable food and ingredients from field to fork. That was a problem with pet foods as there was NO Traceback !
Comment by William Kanitz — August 7, 2007 @ 5:54 pm
Ban all food imports from China…..now!
Obewan
Comment by Lew Orban — August 7, 2007 @ 11:31 pm
I can’t disagree with that, Obewan! Read this article if you want to be alarmed. I say maybe it is time to just say to the Chinese, “Bring it On!” We are going to have to deal with trade inequities someday, and the longer we wait, the worse it will be.
Of course, our congress and the Prez are so far in the pockets of big business, I am sure they won’t act decisively, they will just cave in to foreign govts as usual.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/.....na107a.xml
Comment by Elaine — August 8, 2007 @ 9:43 am
Elaine,
Great article and the truth sometimes is scarey. What morom allowed this to happen…I often wonder who is in charge and who is an American. We have lost our direction as a country and sold out all our resources to the highest bidder! We will pay dearly for selling our country at all levels. This attack was planned many years ago and we followed the carrot and it will destroy our countries financial basis in the near future!
Obewan
Comment by Lew Orban — August 9, 2007 @ 9:06 am