essay on food safety and consumer protection

81 Food Safety Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best food safety topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 good essay topics on food safety, 💡 simple & easy food safety titles.

Food Contamination and Adulteration: Environmental Problems, Food Habits, Way of Cultivation The purpose of this essay is to explain reasons for different kinds of food contamination and adulteration, harmful contaminants and adulterants and the diseases caused by the usage of those substances, prevention of food contamination […]
Food Safety and Its Application The realization that low temperatures slow down the growth of microbes and the process of food spoilage led to the invention of refrigeration. We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
The Importance of Food Safety in Live The food control system is an internationally recognized system that details various elements that are involved in food handling and to ensure safety and fitness for human consumption.
Food Hygiene Inspection of a Food Premises and the Intervention Strategies The need to conduct this inspection was necessitated by the complaints that were received from the customers about the food served at this store.
Beef Industry: Nutrition and Food Safety Analysis The amount of saturated fat in the six leanest beef cuts is almost equal to that in the chicken’s leanest cut, the skinless chicken breast.
The Governmental Role in Food Safety The government has the mandate to supervise the overall procedures that are undertaken for food to be made from the farms to the shelves.
Food Safety Risk Assessment Poultry is a reservoir of salmonella in human being due to the ability of salmonella to proliferate in the intestines of poultry.
Food Safety Policy for a Music Festival Several food businesses are expected to be at the festival thus posing a threat to the health of the participants should the right measures fail to be implemented to avoid the spread of food-borne diseases.
Food Hygiene Legislation in the UK For comprehension purposes, the applicable food laws and powers of authorized officers who conducted the inspection are presented briefly in the first section of the report.
CookSafe Food Safety Management Audit The audit also highlights some of the major problems hindering the application and effectiveness of the CookSafe system. The suitability of HACCP in food safety management is made apparent in the wide scope of the […]
Food Safety Policy and Inspection Services To begin with, I would like to dwell upon the issue of food safety establishments’ attitude towards the complaints of the citizens. The friend’s story mentioned in the discussion serves as a vivid example of […]
The Actuality of Issue of Food Safety Although the article does not explore specific strategies that can be utilized to increase food safety globally, identifying the necessity to promote food safety culture and behavioral change toward food safety make it a reliable […]
Safety of Food: Weaning Management Practices The methods have different significance in the efficiency and performance of the calves, but the main impact remains to prevent and reduce stress.
Operations to Ensure Food Safety The Preventive Controls for Animal Food regulation requires suppliers of animal food, particularly pet food, to apply the same careful preparation used to identify and avoid dangers in the growth of human food.
Food Safety Modernization Act and Its Importance Because of the increasing concerns about the food safety outbreak of foodborne diseases and other food contamination in the United States, sophisticated inspection-based procedures based on accurate detection technologies are necessary to ensure that food […]
Position on Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) The peer discusses the content of the law, the danger of foodborne illness, food pollution, and presents arguments supporting the position on the inefficiency of FSMA.
Preserving Food Hygiene and Safety Thirdly, assessment Apps have aided in the transition of audits from worksheets to a platform designed to implement and track food safety procedures.
Food Safety and Organic Growing in the USA According to Ehlermann, the technique allows to contain food spoilage, destroy foodborne pathogens, such as bacteria, and eliminate the effects of insect pests without significantly affecting the taste or smell of food.
Wildlife Conservation and Food Safety for Human From the epidemiological investigation, the seafood market in Wuhan was termed as the cause of the outbreak and Coronavirus was identified as of bat origin.
Food Safety and Information Bulletin Moreover, meat, poultry, fish and other fresh products should be packed in separate plastic bags in order not to spoil the rest of the products selected.

✍️ Food Safety Essay Topics for College

Food Safety in the Modern World It is evident that the process of delivering food to the table is highly complex and there are multiple points along the way where food may be mishandled leading to contamination.
Impacts of H7N9 Virus and Food Contamination at Maleic Acid on Inbound Tourism for Elderly to Taiwan In addition, health involves the advancement of the entire body of the individual with regard to the individual’s mind, spirit, or will to aid in his/her functionality.
The Sunshine Wok: Food Hygiene Inspection At the kitchen, the food handler was not aware of the requirement to maintain high-risk food at a temperature of not above 8 C and was at 9.4oC.
The Routine Food Hygiene Inspection The report will outline the conditions present in the food establishment that violate the food hygiene legislation and regulations. The main food legislations in the UK and Europe include the Food Safety Act 1990, the […]
The Food Industry as a Threat to Public Health and Food Safety Nestle examine the problem of food safety, but the main difference is that they focus on the practical aspect of the issue. The authors suggest the regulation and monitoring of the food industry by health […]
Public Service Bulletin: Food Safety Issues It should be noted that food itself does not cause illnesses but what causes illnesses are the pathogens and bacteria present in food. There are several illnesses commonly referred to as food borne diseases that […]
Independent Food Safety Inspections in US Restaurants In order to take proper control over the quality of the food served in facilities, the Us Food & Drug Administration has implemented the system of regulatory inspections.
The Problem of Food Safety and the Spread of Various Diseases These days the low level of food safety, the absence of health infrastructure, and the inability of the authorities to take preventive measures contribute a lot to appearing emergencies in some countries.
Safety and Quality: Food Contaminants and Adulteration Food adulteration according to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act is any food that contains materials that are injurious or noxious to the health of a human being.
3D Printed Food and Utensils Safety The former is typically implemented in the production of simple foods and components, whereas the latter is used in combined culinary, with the implementation of both natural and printed ingredients.
Food Safety and Regulations in China Today, China, the world’s largest food producer, has chosen the path to reforming domestic legislation in the field of food safety, by eliminating the contradictions between national standards and technical regulations for food production.
Casa Vasca Restaurant’s Food Safety and Sanitation As the restaurant is open daily, I have visited it once during the working days and on the weekend to compare whether the restaurant practices or service differs on regular days and at the weekends […]
Food Poisoning and Hygiene Awareness in Saudi Arabia The primary aim of the research is to establish the extent to which hygiene awareness in Saudi Arabia helps in the prevention of disease.
Food Safety and Health Violation at Workplace This can give pests access to food and enhance the growth and spread of bacteria. This can cause a quick growth and spread of bacteria.
Food Safety at Introducing of New Meal The former is the most significant threat from the medium risk category due to its high presence, and the latter is the biggest issue out of all the factors listed above.
Food Safety: Washing Contact Surfaces and Cooking An important aspect of food safety is the personal hygiene practices of the food handlers as they make contact with the food.
Aspen Hills Inc.’s Food Safety and Quality Issues For most of the food companies and restaurants, food safety is one of the primary components of quality management. As a result of the letter, the company’s officials chose to shut down the production activity […]
The Mass Production of Food: Food Safety Issue The development of the food industry regarding the mass production of food globally led to the discussion of the food safety and nutrition issues at the international level because the violation of the food safety […]
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department He also claims that the attendance book was left unattended and thus he filled in information in the absence of the receptionist attendant.Mr.
Food Preparation: Workplace Hygiene Thus if the chicken is not properly cooked or stored the bacteria in it can survive and cause food poisoning. Thus the chickens were contaminated by the germs or bacteria that were in the hands […]
Recommendations for Ensuring Food Safety & Reducing Disease-Causing Mosquitoes As such, the focus should be to introduce mandatory employee training especially in areas of food safety to guarantee that appropriate practices in hygiene, food handling and preparation, and sanitation are put in place in […]
Consumer Attitudes Towards Food Safety Risks Associated With Meat Processing
Food Safety Risk Perceptions as a Tool for Market Segmentation
Balancing Food Safety and Risk: Do Restrictions Affect International Trade?
Food Safety Strategies in Hybrid Governance Structures
Food and Its Effects on Health and Food Safety
Breeding Crops for Enhanced Food Safety
Evolving Food Safety Pressures in California’s Central Coast Region
Food Safety and Network Governance Structure of the Agri-Food System
Assessing the Potential Impact of Strengthening Food Safety Regulations on Developing Countries
Efficient Food Safety Regulation in the Food Manufacturing Sector
Contradictions, Consequences, and the Human Toll of Food Safety Culture
Consumer Demand for Innovations in Food Safety
Food Safety and Social Capital: A Double Side Connection
Demand for Improved Food Safety and Quality: A Cross-Regional Comparison
Agriculture and Health Through Food Safety and Nutrition
Analyzing Food Safety and Labeling
Are Food Safety Standards Different From Other Food Standards?
Food Safety and Trade: Winners and Losers in a Non-harmonized World
Demographic and Socioeconomic Influences on the Importance of Food Safety in Food Shopping
Benchmarking International Food Safety Performance in the Fresh Produce Sector
Benefits of Food Safety Policies in Vegetable Preparation and Consumption
Food Safety: Strengthening the Present With an Eye to the Future
Mandatory Versus Voluntary Approaches to Food Safety
Global Initiative for Food Safety in Government Facilities
Improving Food Safety Management Practices
Geographical Indications, Food Safety, and Sustainability
Mycotoxin Food Safety Risk in Developing Countries
Welfare Losses Due to Food Safety Regulation
Opportunities for the Coregulation of Food Safety: Insights From the United Kingdom
Contracts in the Supply Chain and Food Safety in International Markets
Modeling Food Safety Strategies
Public and Private Food Safety Standards: Facilitating or Frustrating Fresh Produce Growers
The Economic Forces Driving Food Safety Quality in Meat and Poultry
Managing Food Safety Modernization: The Produce Industry Perspective
Free International Food Safety Regulations
Maximum Residue Limits: Protectionism or Food Safety
Food Safety Standards and Their Impact on the Small Farms of Developed Countries
Redesigning Food Safety: Using Risk Analysis to Build a Better Food Safety System
The Potential of Insurance to Improve Food Safety
Assessing the Benefits and Costs of Improving Food Safety
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Enhancing Food Safety: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration (2010)

Chapter: summary.

P roviding nutritious, abundant, and safe food requires the efforts of many partners that together make up today’s complex and evolving food system. 1 Since 1906, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its predecessor agencies have regulated foods, among other products. Today the agency has oversight of approximately 80 percent of the U.S. food supply. 2

Although there have been prior efforts to identify needed improvements in food safety, recent multistate foodborne illness outbreaks have again highlighted a food safety system that is not always effective in protecting the public health. The FDA has been criticized as responding only reactively to food safety problems and neglecting its preventive functions. With these concerns in mind, in 2008 Congress requested that the FDA contract with the National Academies for a comprehensive study of gaps in the FDA’s food safety system. While the responsibility for addressing these challenges

does not lie solely with the FDA, the focus of this report is on enhancing that agency’s food programs, specifically those devoted to food safety.

STUDY APPROACH

To conduct this study, a 13-member committee with extensive experience in FDA food programs and policies, food law and regulations, risk analysis and communication, economics, epidemiology, monitoring and surveillance, food microbiology and toxicology, feed issues, and state food programs was convened. The committee gathered information through six meetings, statements in response to specific queries to the FDA, and public documents.

As requested ( Box S-1 ), the committee reviewed the FDA’s 2007 Food Protection Plan (FPP), a road map aligned with the agency’s strategic plan, but it also worked to identify additional tools and capacities to improve food safety. Since the publication of the FPP, organizational and leadership changes in the federal government 3 have altered the U.S. food safety scene. In this new environment, the committee envisioned the FPP as a point of departure but focused its attention on providing the FDA with concrete guidance in various areas of concern, including the need to implement a risk-based food safety management system.

The committee left many of the details of the implementation of its recommendations to the FDA, especially since food safety is just one of the agency’s many responsibilities. The committee considered cost and resource issues in a general sense by drawing on the experience of members who formerly held senior leadership positions at the FDA. Because essential information was not always accessible, however, the committee lacked the full evidence base needed to address these issues in detail.

CONCLUSIONS

This section presents the committee’s main conclusions. It begins with a brief review of the FPP, which is evaluated throughout the report as appropriate. It then presents conclusions concerning the development and implementation of a stronger, more effective food safety system built on a risk-based approach to food safety management.

Strategic planning is an essential element of a food safety program and should precede the design and implementation of a risk-based approach to food safety management. At a broad level, strategic planning entails identifying public health goals (e.g., reducing the number of infections caused

by specific foods), identifying tools for attaining those goals (e.g., research, education activities), and developing measures with which to evaluate success. The FDA’s strategic plan for food safety management should explain its risk-based regulatory philosophy and the factors it will weigh in making decisions about the prioritization of efforts, allocation of resources, and selection of interventions. At a specific level, all of the risk-based activities discussed in the report (e.g., data collection) should be undertaken only after strategic planning.

The FPP ( Appendix G ) presents the FDA’s general philosophy on food safety, focusing on three core elements: (1) prevention, (2) intervention, and (4) response. It also outlines the following four cross-cutting principles: (1) focus on risks over a product’s life cycle, (2) target resources to achieve maximum risk reduction, (3) address both unintentional and deliberate contamination, and (4) use science and modern technology systems.

The committee concluded that while the FPP can serve as a platform for initiating a transformation at the FDA, it lacks sufficient detail on which to base policy decisions on prevention and risk. For example, it does not provide specific strategies to achieve the actions proposed. Moreover, terms such as “risk” and “risk-based approaches” are not adequately defined in the FPP; thus they do not clearly elucidate the FDA’s philosophy and can be misunderstood. The committee concluded that the FPP needs to evolve and be supported by the type of strategic planning described in this report.

Adopting a Risk-Based Decision-Making Approach to Food Safety

In a food safety system, decisions about resource allocation need to be made consistently in order to maximize benefits and reduce risks while also considering costs. Food safety risk managers must consider a wide variety of concerns in their decision making, including the needs and values of diverse stakeholders, the controllability of various risks, the size and vulnerabilities of the populations affected, and economic factors. Although the balancing of diverse risks, benefits, and costs is challenging, the lack of a systematic, risk-based approach to facilitate decision making can cause problems ranging from a decrease in public trust to the occurrence of unintended consequences to society, the environment, and the marketplace. Moreover, to carry out all its food safety responsibilities and ensure continuity of everyday operations, the FDA needs to have sufficient staff working on food issues to ensure that routine functions continue even when a crisis occurs.

The committee examined concrete examples of the FDA’s risk-based activities and identified gaps. Although the FDA is to be commended for embracing classic tools of risk assessment and management, it currently lacks a comprehensive, systematic vision for a risk-based food safety sys-

tem. Many of the attributes necessary for such a system, including strategic planning, transparency, and formalized prioritization processes, are lacking in the agency’s approach to food safety management. The FDA also has made only limited progress toward establishing performance metrics for measuring improvements in food safety.

Food safety is a shared responsibility of industry, retailers, consumers, and government agencies, and determining their roles is an important component of strategic planning. Regulators also must establish a systematic means of evaluating, selecting, and designing interventions to address high-priority risks. The FDA lacks a clear regulatory philosophy for assigning responsibility and a comprehensive strategy for choosing the level and intensity of interventions, as well as the extensive resources necessary to design and support a comprehensive risk-based food safety management system.

The risk-based approach recommended by the committee is summarized in Box S-2 .

Creating a Data Surveillance and Research Infrastructure

Data form the foundation of a risk-based decision-making approach, and vast amounts of such data are being collected by the government, industry, and academia. However, the FDA has not adequately assessed its data needs and lacks a systematic means by which to collect, analyze, manage, and share data. Barriers to the availability and utilization of data to support a risk-based approach include a lack of data sharing, the absence of a comprehensive data infrastructure, and limited analytical expertise within the FDA.

The FDA’s surveillance role is supported by its research capacity, which gives the agency an opportunity to fill data gaps and address uncertainties to help refine its risk-based decision making. The FDA’s current food safety research program appears to be fragmented and poorly managed, lacking strategic planning and coordination of research that is conducted intramurally and at the five extramural research centers. Many basic questions, such as the size and scope of the FDA’s research program and the appropriate balance between basic and applied research, need to be addressed before the program can be supportive of a risk-based approach. In particular, inadequate attention is given to research aimed at determining the efficacy and value of specific food safety management policies.

Integrating Federal, State, and Local Government Food Safety Programs

Food safety activities of state and local (including territorial and tribal) governments, including inspection, surveillance, and outbreak investigation, have long been important contributors to the U.S. food safety system.

However, these activities are not fully integrated so that duplication is minimized. Integration will require harmonization so that all programs and functions related to food safety meet a minimum set of standards. The FDA has standards in place that, if broadened and implemented properly, could serve as the basis for this harmonization. As with the federal system, state and local efforts should be built on a risk-based approach.

Enhancing the Efficiency of Inspections

For years, the inspectional capacity and efficiency of the FDA have been criticized as inadequate. Although mindful of potential gains from allocating more resources to the FDA’s inspection system, the committee focused on increasing the system’s efficiency. One barrier to improved efficiency is that the FDA’s food programs lack direct authority over the work of inspectors, resulting in potential substantial delays in policy implementation in the field. Nor have inspection procedures been reviewed for efficiency or consis-

tency with a risk-based approach. The committee concluded that exploring alternative models for the inspection of food facilities (e.g., delegating some inspection activities to state and local governments, accepting third-party auditing of food facilities) could lead to gains in efficiency.

Improving Food Safety and Risk Communication

Risk communication is integral to risk-based food safety management. The FDA should envision risk communication not only as consultation with stakeholders at various steps of the risk-based process, but also as a form of policy intervention to achieve objectives in its strategic plan. The FDA’s risk-based food safety management system must incorporate effective risk communication and food safety education for consumers and those who could impact public health through their professions, such as public health officials. The FDA should continue to use the advice of the Risk Communication Advisory Committee; below the committee offers several other recommendations to enhance risk communication.

Modernizing Legislation to Enhance the U.S. Food Safety System

Since 1938, Congress has occasionally amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) to enhance the FDA’s power to fulfill its food safety mission. In some fundamental respects, however, the law under which the FDA must ensure the safety of 80 percent of the nation’s food has remained unchanged since 1938—despite the dramatic changes in food production and distribution patterns that have taken place. Those food safety provisions of the FDCA that are broad delegations of power rather than specific grants of authority have led to the FDA’s vulnerability to court challenges and, consequently, the agency’s reluctance to take action. This deficiency in the food safety system needs to be remedied.

Achieving the Vision of an Efficient Risk-Based Food Safety System

The committee is confident that the risk-based approach recommended in this report would enhance the FDA’s ability to ensure food safety now and in the future. Nonetheless, the committee recognizes that this approach will not work optimally under the current organizational structure of the food safety system. The committee is encouraged by the establishment of the Office of Foods in 2009, but it has not been persuaded that this single consolidation step will resolve the important problems related to the separation of responsibilities in the FDA’s food programs.

Food safety in the United States is managed by many government agencies. The ability of the FDA, and the government in general, to succeed in

ensuring food safety through the development of a risk-based food safety management system would be greatly enhanced if the recommendations in this report were implemented in the context of organizational changes, such as the integration of activities currently scattered among poorly coordinated agencies. There are many potential avenues of organizational reform and many serious barriers to overcome. Hence, the importance of in-depth analysis and planning of such changes cannot be overemphasized.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The committee’s deliberations resulted in suggested directions for improving food safety management ( Box S-3 ) and specific recommendations for overcoming deficiencies in the food safety system ( Box S-4 ).

LOOKING FORWARD

Although food safety is the responsibility of everyone, from producers to consumers, the FDA and other regulatory agencies have an essential role. In many instances, the FDA must carry out this responsibility against a backdrop of multiple stakeholder interests, inadequate resources, and competing priorities. The committee hopes that this report provides the FDA and Congress with a course of action that will enable the agency to become more efficient and effective in carrying out its food safety mission in a rapidly changing world.

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Recent outbreaks of illnesses traced to contaminated sprouts and lettuce illustrate the holes that exist in the system for monitoring problems and preventing foodborne diseases. Although it is not solely responsible for ensuring the safety of the nation's food supply, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees monitoring and intervention for 80 percent of the food supply. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's abilities to discover potential threats to food safety and prevent outbreaks of foodborne illness are hampered by impediments to efficient use of its limited resources and a piecemeal approach to gathering and using information on risks. Enhancing Food Safety: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration , a new book from the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council, responds to a congressional request for recommendations on how to close gaps in FDA's food safety systems.

Enhancing Food Safety begins with a brief review of the Food Protection Plan (FPP), FDA's food safety philosophy developed in 2007. The lack of sufficient detail and specific strategies in the FPP renders it ineffectual. The book stresses the need for FPP to evolve and be supported by the type of strategic planning described in these pages. It also explores the development and implementation of a stronger, more effective food safety system built on a risk-based approach to food safety management. Conclusions and recommendations include adopting a risk-based decision-making approach to food safety; creating a data surveillance and research infrastructure; integrating federal, state, and local government food safety programs; enhancing efficiency of inspections; and more.

Although food safety is the responsibility of everyone, from producers to consumers, the FDA and other regulatory agencies have an essential role. In many instances, the FDA must carry out this responsibility against a backdrop of multiple stakeholder interests, inadequate resources, and competing priorities. Of interest to the food production industry, consumer advocacy groups, health care professionals, and others, Enhancing Food Safety provides the FDA and Congress with a course of action that will enable the agency to become more efficient and effective in carrying out its food safety mission in a rapidly changing world.

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Consumers’ awareness of food safety from shopping to eating

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Example Of Food Safety Essay

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Health , Medicine , Security , Human , Study , Genetics , Food , Safety

Words: 2500

Published: 03/20/2020

ORDER PAPER LIKE THIS

Food is a necessity because it is essential to human beings’ survival. For this reason, food production is a crucial function in modern life because processes and initiatives determine the quantity and quality of food produced and distributed to consumers. Food production, however, is not an easy process. In some cases, food consumed by people not only cause illnesses or various diseases but also lead to death. As a result, producers around the world adopted various measures to ascertain the quality of food and the health and safety of consumers. Solving food safety is a variable process primarily because issues that threaten this are diverse. The research focuses on identifying current and relevant issues that threaten food safety particularly improper food handling, preparation, and storage practices, and the strategies and practices that organizations employ in order to address food security that affect the health and wellbeing of people. The discussion focuses on the problems in food safety and their implications on human life. After presenting issues concerning food safety, the discussion also includes recommendations on how people would be able to address the foregoing problems to ensure that they consume high quality food. Solutions to food safety problems include increased awareness about food handling and storage, as well as increased reliance on organic food. Science could also contribute to the foregoing problems by introducing non-harmful ways to produce plant and animal food sources and offset the outcomes of climate change on agriculture and food production.

Consumption and Food Safety

One of the most important issues when it comes to food and consumption is safety. Food is a basic necessity because it perpetuates the survival of human beings. Nonetheless, food could place people’s lives at risk. People die after consumption if food contains deadly organisms such as bacteria or virus, poison, and other harmful substances. Some sources of food in nature are also prohibited for consumption because they are harmful to people’s health. For the foregoing reasons, food safety is important when it comes to curbing incidences of death and illness due to food. Aside from the presence of deadly organisms on food, other reasons or factors that contribute to food safety issues include improper handling and storage of food. Food items formulate bacteria, for instance, when they are kept under conditions that do not favor the preservation of the food’s quality. Some food items must be frozen, while others must be heated or cooled. Food must also be stored properly to prevent bacteria from formulating on the surface of the food. The foregoing problems have plagued the food production industry for many years. Proposed solutions include the inclusion of ingredients in food to improve its quality and prevent it from decomposition or contamination. Other solutions include standards or guidelines and their implementation in food preparation particularly in restaurants and other food establishments. In recent years, however, one of the primary social issues related to food safety include the quality of food. Various health institutions raised this issue because of the increasing number of illnesses caused by low food quality. Some of these illnesses are also serious and the leading causes of death around the world. Illnesses such as cancer, heart diseases, and diabetes, for instance, are outcomes of poor food quality. Proof to the alarming rate of unfortunate circumstances linked to food safety is the growing number of cases involving food poisoning or the onset of diseases due to consumption of unsafe food. The number of articles about food safety published over the years (See Figure 1) have significantly increased over time, thus, signaling the growing number of issues related to safety and intensifying the need to immediately address the problem.

Cultural and Sociological Relevance of Food Safety

Since the objective of the research is to view a specific issue from the cultural and sociological perspective, we are going to explore some of the issues linked to food quality. Aside from the content of food, this issue is also cultural in nature because it is tied to the food consumption practices in other countries. In a discussion about food quality, Kent (2012) pointed out that food choices often affect our health. Hence, in countries where people’s choices are scarce or are limited to specific types of food following cultural practices such as religious traditions, the quality of their food and consumption differs from that of others. Aside from religion and culture, lifestyle and beliefs as well as personal preferences as influenced by news and science are also some of the factors that affect people’s choices when it comes to food consumption. Kent mentioned Jews and Muslims as examples. Due to their religion, Jews and Muslims follow restrictions when it comes to food consumption. Both groups are averse to the consumption of pork, which may be an outcome of their religion rather than health concerns. Nonetheless, because of Jews and Muslims’ aversion to pork, they consume better food choices because pork is excluded from their diet. Due to safety issues concerning pork, such as contaminations with various bacteria (Bottemiller, 2012) as well as drugs and other substances that may harm human beings upon consumption (Consumer Reports, 2013), Jews and Muslims are saved from various hazards that may arise if they consumed pork (Kliebenstein, n..d). Aside from Jews and Muslims or other groups that set restrictions about their diet, other people that choose to live a healthy lifestyle are those that are also at lesser risk of being affected by food safety issues. Often, these people learn about food production so they would be aware about the origin, production, and handling of their food. People living a healthy lifestyle prefer less processed organic food handled delicately to preserve the freshness and the nutritional content of these food items. Furthermore, they learn how to prepare food so they would obtain nutritional benefits of organic food. Overall, people that follow rigid cultural or lifestyle practices when it comes to food consumption consume healthier and therefore, safer food products.

Food Security and Food Safety

Kent (2012) also raised another issue concerning food safety and quality. One of the main problems regarding food is security. Various factors threaten food security especially during the next decades. The increasing population threatens food supply since it would be inadequate in meeting the needs of billions of people around the world. Another factor affecting food security is climate change. Global warming, the continued warming of the earth, contributes to climate change. Climate change consequently affects agriculture. Unpredictable rain patterns bring drought in farm lands particularly in Africa because unlike before, long gaps between downpours dry the land damaging plants in the process. It is for this reason that starvation and malnutrition persist in various African countries as well as other regions experiencing climate change. To offset the outcomes of overpopulation and climate change on food supply, as well as issues concerning food security, scientists introduced the genetic medication of plants and animals as one of the solutions to produce more food and meet consumption demand and ease food security around the world (Schmidhuber & Tubiello, 2007).

Genetic Modification of Food

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) were injected with specific substances that would allow them to produce food even under difficult conditions or in bigger and greater amounts than organic food sources. Through genetic modifications, for instance, poultry are able to produce more eggs. Moreover, poultry mature faster than free range chickens. In this way, poultry producers would be able to meet the demand for this product. Some animals such as salmon are genetically modified to grow to bigger sizes than the average size of this species. Genetically modified plant sources, on the other hand, also mature faster than organic plants and yield bigger produce. Although the genetic modification of plants and animals is well-intentioned, the outcomes of which challenge food safety because of the possible impact of GMOs on people’s health. While some people embrace genetic modification as one of the viable solutions to food supply and security issues, others question it because of health implications. People who protest against companies or organizations that produce GMOs not only argue against the ethical implications of genetic modification but also raise the issue of health. Although some studies prove that GMOs are healthy and safety for consumption, hence their widespread distribution and production, some research studies link consumption of GMOs to diseases including cancer. For this reason, genetic modification is a food safety issue because it could possible affect people’s health in the long run. In one study, researchers fed laboratory rats with GMOs for a long period of time. After doing so, the researchers then studies the subjects’ anatomy and discovered that the rats’ continuous consumption of GMOs damaged their major organs – the kidney and liver (Walia, 2014). Moreover, the content of GMOs greatly disrupted the subjects’ hormonal levels. Although supporting research studies are scarce as of the moment, the study was published in a reputable journal publication. If we are to base our conclusions about GMOs on the research study, we may then surmise that people’s continuous consumption of genetically modified food could also eventually lead to human kidney and liver damage, as well as hormonal imbalance.

The Use of Drugs in Food Production

In relation to food security, many farmers rely on different substances or drugs to increase their yield. Illness is one of the reasons, for instance, that lower the number of poultry and livestock production. To solve the problem, farmers administer drugs to animals in order to increase their immunity to diseases (Consumer Reports, 2013). Although this practice is not questionable per se because using antibiotics helps increase the life span of animals and ascertain their maturity prior to production and distribution, antibiotic use is a food safety issue because of its implications on food consumption. Prior to distribution, some farmers feed livestock and poultry with substances to flush out antibiotics from their system. Nonetheless, this is not always the case as this process is not full proof. Scientists studied cooked meat to determine if they contain drugs or substances. Research outcomes show that traces of drugs were found in meat even if it was cooked (Consumer Reports, 2013). Furthermore, scientists found antibiotic-resistant bacteria on the same product. The implications of which are far-reaching and alarming because if drugs and antibiotic-resistant bacteria remain and survive in cooked food, human beings would consume it. People would be affected by veterinary drugs injected to livestock and poultry and worse, they would ingest bacteria and get sick but will not be able to treat their illness with antibiotics. If the bacteria ingested by people is deadly, then they would pass on because medicine would not work against antibiotic-resistant organisms.

Solutions to Food Safety Issues

As formerly noted, food safety relates to culture and sociological practices including lifestyle. Jews and Muslims who avoid consuming pork are less at risk for contracting diseases brought about by consumption of meat. Individual preferences also affect food consumption and therefore, safety. Hence, one of the solutions in maintaining food safety is people’s adoption of positive habits or activities, even if borrowed from other cultures or religions, towards the goal of consuming healthy and safe food. Awareness plays an important role in accomplishing this objective. People must be aware of food safety issues so that they would be more welcoming of various options that would help them prepare and consume healthier and safer food options. One of the more relevant outcomes of the research is the urgency of solving food safety issues. In the foregoing discussion, we pointed out the increasing need to resolve food safety issues because of mounting evidence about risks involving food. Figure 1 shows the significant rise of cases and articles about food safety issues, thus, highlighting this as a pressing global issue. People can become more aware about issues, and therefore, adopt better strategies to safeguard their health and wellbeing by reading these cases and articles. Online and physical news and sources carry different stories and information about food safety. Some articles show proper food handling, preparation and storage while research studies illustrate the impact of certain food items on the health and wellbeing of people. By reading articles related to the issue, people would know how to prepare and handle food properly, and what to do to ensure that they consume healthy and safe food products. Awareness in people could also enable them to come up with solutions themselves and contribute to the body of literature and solutions to address food safety. Scientific and technological developments may also be introduced to address the foregoing problems. Since scientists introduced genetic modification, they could also conduct research studies in order to determine solutions to the detrimental impact of GMOs on human beings’ health. Addressing food security through genetic modification is essential but the health and safety of consumers around the world is paramount. Scientists should therefore prioritize human health over the discovery and development of processes and strategies to increase the number or size of food produced over time. Recommendations, therefore, focus on continued research about food safety and the link between studies in this field to food security in order to prevent practices and strategies in food production that are detrimental to the health of human beings. Figure 1. Number of Articles in Google News Archive Related to ‘Food Safety’

Bottemiller, H. (2012). Consumer reports finds most pork contaminated with Yersinia. Retrieved from: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/11/consumer-reports-finds-most-pork-positive-for-yersinia/#.VIScYTGUeSo Consumer Reports. (2013). What’s in that pork? Retrieved from: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2013/01/what-s-in-that-pork/index.htm Kent, G. (2012). Food quality: An issue as important as safety. Retrieved from: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/07/food-safety-not-just-an-issue-of-immediate-threats/#.VIRvhDGUeSo Kliebenstein, J. B. (n.d.). Pork production contracts and food safety issues. Retrieved from: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Pages/ansci/swinereports/asl-1516.pdf Schmidhuber, J. & Tubiello, F. N. (2007). Global food security under climate change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104(50), 19703-19708. Walia, A. (2014). New study links GMOs to cancer, liver/kidney damage & severe hormonal disruption. Retrieved from: http://www.collective-evolution.com/2014/07/15/new-study-links-gmos-to-cancer-liverkidney-damage-severe-hormonal-disruption/

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The Importance of Food Safety: Top Food-Related Public Health Issues

November 8, 2023

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A lab technician tests produce for contaminants using a microscope.

Food is key to achieving and maintaining good health — and to promote healthy behaviors, food must be accessible and safe. Anything less can increase the challenges to communities and individuals who seek to be healthy and well-nourished.

Public health professionals play a vital role in maintaining a high level of food safety and security. It’s an important area of focus, as food safety impacts people of every age, race, gender and income level. There are several key elements of food safety for officials to consider, from rapidly advancing technology and growing worries over food security, to lingering post-pandemic impacts and persistent concerns over chemicals. Public health professionals with the right education should fully understand the importance of food safety and its impacts on society.

Why Is Food Safety Important?

Maintaining a consistent level of food safety is critical to a fully functioning society. Consuming unsafe foods or not having access to food can have profound negative ramifications and cause a plethora of public health issues. As of 2022, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates 1 in 6 Americans fall ill each year due to contaminated food, and around 3,000 Americans die annually because of various foodborne illnesses.

The impact of food safety issues can also carry an economic impact, as falling ill from unsafe foods can lead to a loss of work productivity and increases in medical expenses. According to the CDC, the U.S. incurs a cost of around $15.6 billion annually due to foodborne illnesses.

Public health officials are in a position to be stewards of food safety. They can minimize food safety through coordinated efforts with state and local health departments and federal agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service.

4 Food-Related Public Health Issues

The challenges to food safety and security cover a broad scope, and this means they can impact communities and individuals differently. The scope of these challenges can also be fluid, as new threats to food safety may emerge to create new issues. As such, public health officials must be aware of the key food safety issues as they arise and as they evolve, so they can effectively minimize their impact.

Food Insecurity

Food insecurity is a term ascribed to a socioeconomic condition where a household has uncertain or limited access to adequate food. It’s a situation shaped by complex factors, including employment, income, racial inequities and neighborhood conditions. Lack of transportation to grocery stores or the proliferation of “food deserts” — areas with limited access to full-service grocery stores — can also fuel the issue.

The USDA divides food insecurity into two separate classifications. The first, low food security, indicates “reduced quality, variety or desirability of diet” with “little to no indication of reduced food intake.” The second, very low food security, indicates “multiple indications of disrupted eating patterns and reduced food intake.”

Food insecurity is a widespread issue that carries a disproportionate impact. A USDA study found 10.2% of American households experienced food insecurity at one point in 2021, a percentage that translates to 13.5 million individuals. That included 26.5% of low-income households; 19.8% of Black, non-Hispanic households; and 16.2% of Hispanic households.

The New Era of Smarter Food Safety

In 2020, the FDA launched a blueprint called the New Era of Smarter Food Safety. Its goal is to use technology to improve food safety. This strategy advances the objectives put forth by the FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act by providing public health officials with more ways to address food safety proactively.

The blueprint features the following four core elements.

Tech-Enabled Traceability: Creates a system that allows for the rapid tracking of food, enabling public health officials to find foods that may cause outbreaks with greater efficiency
Smarter Outbreak Response Tools: Combine root-cause analyses of past outbreaks with predictive analytics to predict future outbreaks, allowing public health officials to take steps to prevent outbreaks before they occur
Food Safety Culture: Encourages and promotes a culture that acknowledges the importance of food safety
Retail Modernization: Seeks to integrate food safety with online grocery services by educating key points on the supply chain about safety practices

Modern technologies are also having an impact on food safety. Safety in online food shopping is becoming increasingly important, as trends suggest that Gen Zers are having a greater influence on retail shopping as they enter adulthood. According to Food Insight’s 2022 Food and Health Survey, 35% of adults aged 18–24 grocery shopped online at least once a week in 2022. Overall, 25% of American adults shopped for groceries online at least once a week.

Chemical Contaminants in Food

Chemical contaminants such as food additives and food preservatives remain a top concern not only for public health officials but also for consumers. The 2022 Food Insight survey noted 48% of polled consumers listed chemicals as their chief food safety concern, the eighth year in a row that this particular subject topped the list. In this case, “chemicals” represented a host of sub-categories, including cancer-causing chemicals, pesticides, food additives and ingredients and heavy metals.

Another longstanding concern is bisphenol A (BPA), a food and beverage packaging chemical. While many individual countries have restricted its use, its continued use in other countries draws concern. These worries come in the wake of studies suggesting correlations between BPA and asthma in school-age girls.

The Lingering Impact of COVID-19

Public health officials played vital roles during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. While COVID-19 was not spread through food, the pandemic did encourage the food industry to improve awareness of food hygiene and virus transmission. These practices, such as an increased focus on proper hand-washing, food and utensil washing, cooking temperatures and guarding against food cross-contamination, have remained in place as the pandemic wanes. This promises to help mitigate the spread of other pathogens.

The pandemic also exponentially increased food deliveries, which ballooned to a $150 billion global industry in 2021 — more than three times the total in 2017, according to McKinsey & Company. This growth caused consumers to consider other aspects of food safety, such as possible tampering and delays in grocery storage.

Promote the Importance of Food Safety as a Public Health Professional

Knowledge is power when it comes to keeping people safe from foodborne illnesses. Public health professionals are uniquely positioned to help inform and educate the public about the importance of food safety, as well as any persistent and evolving concerns. They can apply their skills to prepare the population to face foodborne illnesses before they can become major health crises.

USC’s online Master of Public Health program can help you take a bold step toward a career in public health. The program offers personalized guidance from public health thought leaders, giving you access to insights on topics such as environmental science and health and human behavior. Additionally, you can specialize your studies by choosing one of five concentrations: Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Community Health Promotion, Health Services and Policy, Global Health and Generalist.

Find out how USC can prepare you for a rewarding career in public health.

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Institute of Medicine (US) and National Research Council (US) Committee to Ensure Safe Food from Production to Consumption. Ensuring Safe Food: From Production to Consumption. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 1998.

Ensuring Safe Food: From Production to Consumption.

Hardcopy Version at National Academies Press

2 The Current US Food Safety System

Every organization and every person involved with the food chain from farm and sea to table shares responsibility for the safety of food. Our "food safety system" includes producers, processors, shippers, retailers, food preparers, and, ultimately, consumers. The government plays an important role by establishing standards and overseeing their enforcement. Supporting roles are played by trade and consumer organizations that inform policy and by professional organizations and academic institutions that engage in research and education. Great responsibility lies with consumers who must be cognizant of the level of safety associated with the foods they purchase and who must handle these foods accordingly. The food safety system in this country is complex and multilevel. It is also essentially uncoordinated. As a consequence, the government's role is also complex, fragmented, and in many ways uncoordinated.

The committee heard testimony from diverse groups asserting that the US food supply is among the safest in the world ( Appendix D ), yet found little evidence to either support or contradict this assertion. In fact, surveillance and reporting systems are insufficient in scope, resources, and statutory authority to generate reliable current measures of foodborne illness, much less to establish trends.

This chapter describes the main features of the current food safety system, including regulation, surveillance, research and development, consumer education, and international dimensions. This overview does not provide a detailed description of the system, but it does illustrate where current responsibilities and allocations of resources exist and how the system currently functions.

Federal Regulatory Programs

At least a dozen federal agencies implementing more than 35 statutes make up the federal part of the food safety system. Twenty-eight House and Senate committees provide oversight of these statutes. The primary Congressional committees responsible for food safety are the Agriculture Committee and Commerce Committee in the House; the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee and the Labor and Human Resources Committee in the Senate; and the House and Senate Agriculture, Rural Development, and Related Agencies Appropriating Subcommittees.

Four agencies play major roles in carrying out food safety regulatory activities: the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA); the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) of the Department of Commerce. More than 50 interagency agreements have been developed to tie the activities of the various agencies together.

FDA has jurisdiction over domestic and imported foods that are marketed in interstate commerce, except for meat and poultry products. FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) seeks to ensure that these foods are safe, sanitary, nutritious, wholesome, and honestly and adequately labeled. CFSAN exercises jurisdiction over food processing plants and has responsibility for approval and surveillance of food-animal drugs, feed additives and of all food additives (including coloring agents, preservatives, food packaging, sanitizers, and boiler water additives) that can become part of food. CFSAN enforces tolerances for pesticide residues that are set by EPA and shares with FSIS responsibilities for egg products (FDA, personal communication to committee, March 1998). The FDA's statutes give CFSAN jurisdiction over restaurants, but it has always ceded this responsibility to states and localities. The agency provides leadership for state regulation of retail and institutional food service through the development of a model Food Code, which it recommends be adopted by states and localities (DHHS, 1995; 1997a).

FDA has oversight responsibility for an estimated 53,000 domestic food establishments (Rawson and Vogt, 1998). In fiscal year 1997, FDA devoted 2,728 staff-years to food safety activities (Lisa Siegel, FDA, personal communication to committee, July 1998). Food safety consumes about 23.5 percent of FDA's budget each year (OMB, 1998). In 1997, that amounted to approximately $203 million for food safety surveillance, risk assessment, research, inspection, and education out of the total FDA budget of $997 million ( Appendix E ; Lisa Siegel, FDA, personal communication to committee, July 1998). The largest share of FDA's budget is devoted to its nonfood responsibilities including drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices. The agency's culture and its public image have been dominated by its drug approval mission.

FSIS seeks to ensure that meat and poultry products for human consumption are safe, wholesome, and correctly marked, labeled, and packaged if they move into interstate or international commerce. By the mid-1990s, roughly 7,400 FSIS inspectors were responsible for inspecting 6,200 meat and poultry slaughtering and processing plants by continuous carcass-by-carcass inspection during slaughter as well as by full daily inspection during processing (FSIS, 1996b). FSIS shares responsibility with FDA for the safety of intact-shell eggs and processed egg products. Because of the statutorily mandated continuous inspection requirements, FSIS's inspection budget is about four times that of FDA ( Appendix E ; Thomas Billy, FSIS, personal communication to committee, March 1998). Food scientists believe that inspection of each animal carcass is no longer the best or most cost-effective means of preventing foodborne diseases, but this effort is required by statute and so is fully funded. The sensory evaluation inspection methods used in FSIS inspections were appropriate when adopted 70 years ago, when major concerns included gross contamination, evidence of animal disease, and other problems that are no longer acute concerns. Those methods are not appropriate or adequate to detect the major microbial and chemical hazards of current concern.

Because of the FDA-USDA jurisdictional split along commodity lines, some food products that might be perceived by consumers as similar are regulated differently, depending on content. The most cited example is pizza, which is regulated by FDA unless topped with 2 percent or more of cooked meat or poultry, in which case it is USDA-regulated (FSIS, 1996a; 9 CFR 319.600). This means that inspection at pizza production facilities must be conducted simultaneously under two sets of guidelines by two different inspectors from separate agencies.

EPA licenses all pesticide products distributed in the United States and establishes tolerances for pesticide residues in or on food commodities and animal feed. EPA is responsible for the safe use of pesticides, as well as food plant detergents and sanitizers, to protect people who work with and around them and to protect the general public from exposure through air, water, and home and garden applications, as well as food uses. EPA is also responsible for protecting against other environmental chemical and microbial contaminants in air and water that might threaten the safety of the food supply (EPA, personal communication to committee, May 1998). In both programs, EPA works with state and local officials.

NMFS conducts a voluntary seafood inspection and grading program which is primarily a food quality activity. Seafood is the only major food source that is both "caught in the wild" and raised domestically. Seafood is an international commodity for which quality and safety standards vary widely from country to country. Inspection of processing is a challenge because much of it takes place at sea (NMFS, personal communication to committee, March 1998). Mandatory regulation of seafood processing is under FDA, and applies to all seafood related entities in FDA's establishment inventory, including exporters, all foreign processors that export to the United States, and importers. However, fishing vessels, common carriers, and retail establishments are excluded.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the USDA oversee the USDA's marketing and regulatory programs. Together they play indirect roles in food safety and more direct roles in marketing, surveillance, data collection, and quality assurance (USDA, personal communication to committee, May 1998).

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of DHHS engages in surveillance and investigation of illnesses associated with food consumption in support of the USDA and FDA regulatory missions (Morris Potter, CDC, personal communication to committee, March 1998). The Federal Trade Commission, through regulation of food advertising, plays an indirect role in food safety regulation.

Several other federal agencies have smaller but important regulatory responsibilities in food safety. For example, the Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is responsible for overseeing the production, distribution, and labeling of alcoholic beverages, except for wines containing less than 7 percent alcohol, which are the responsibility of FDA. The department's Customs Service assists other agencies in ensuring the safety and quality of imported foods through such services as collecting samples.

State and Local Regulatory Systems

State and local health departments are responsible for surveillance at the state and local level and the extent to which these activities are carried out varies widely by jurisdiction. States and territories have separate departments of health and of agriculture. In addition, many counties and many cities have parallel agencies. In total, more than 3,000 state and local agencies have food safety responsibilities for retail food establishments (DHHS, 1997a). In many jurisdictions, there is a split between agriculture and health department authority that mirrors, in many respects, the split in federal food safety jurisdictions. In most state and local jurisdictions, for example, the health department has authority over restaurants, but the agriculture department has authority over supermarkets. Thus, a restaurant in a supermarket might be under agriculture department authority, whereas a stand-alone restaurant in the same chain will fall under the authority of the health department. Like FDA and USDA, health and agriculture departments in the same jurisdiction are generally governed by different statutes, use different methods and standards, and have different cultures that affect their regulatory stance.

States are responsible for the inspection of meat and poultry sold in the state where they are produced, but FSIS monitors the process. The 1967 Wholesome Meat Act and the 1968 Wholesome Poultry Products Act require state inspection programs to be ''at least equal to" the federal inspection programs. If a state chooses to end its inspection programs or cannot maintain the "at least equal to" standard, FSIS must assume responsibility for inspection. In a few states, state employees carry out inspections in some federal plants under federal-state cooperative inspection agreements.

FDA's Food Code provides scientific standards and guidelines that states and localities may adopt for food safety in restaurants and institutional food settings (DHHS, 1995; 1997a). The code includes temperature standards for cooking, cooling, refrigerating, reheating, and holding food. It also recommends that inspectors visit restaurants every six months. Each state or locality may choose to adopt any or all of the code in its laws or regulations. Although there appears to be some recent progress toward more widespread adoption of this model code (FDA, personal communication to committee, June 1998), there is much variation among jurisdictions in standards currently being applied to restaurants and other food establishments, according to one recent survey (DeWaal and Dahl, 1997).

In contrast with the FDA Food Code, which has had varied acceptance, the Public Health Service 1924 Standard Milk Ordinance has been adopted by all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US trust territories. This model was created collaboratively by public and private entities to assist states and municipalities in initiating and maintaining effective programs for the prevention of milkborne disease. Now known as the Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance, it is the standard used in the voluntary cooperative state-PHS program for certification of interstate milk shippers. Revisions are considered every two years on the basis of recommendations of the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments. The ordinance is incorporated by reference into federal specifications for procurement of milk and milk products, and it is used as the sanitary regulation for milk and milk products served on interstate carriers. The ordinance is recognized by public health agencies, the milk industry, and many others as a national standard for milk sanitation, although exemptions allow for the sale of raw milk in some states (International Dairy Foods Association, personal communication to committee, April 1998).

HACCP Systems

Many parts of the current food safety assurance system are in the early stages of transition to Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) programs. The leadership of FSIS, FDA, and industry in making this fundamental change to a hazard prevention system is commendable. It is widely accepted by the scientific community that use of HACCP systems in food production, processing, distribution, and preparation is the best known approach to enhancing the safety of foods. If HACCP programs are fully implemented, they will substantially increase the effectiveness of the system. HACCP programs use a systematic approach to identify microbiological, chemical, and physical hazards in the food supply, and establish critical control points that eliminate or control such hazards (NRC, 1985). The control must effectively address the identified hazard and the effectiveness of the control point must be validated.

This approach appears to be much more effective in ensuring the safety of foods than traditional visual inspection practices. The HACCP system institutes methods to control food safety hazards, whereas traditional inspection and testing procedures are not designed to detect and control contaminants that are sporadically distributed throughout foods and are not visible.

In 1995, the FDA issued its final rule on HACCP for seafood, requiring all seafood processors to conduct a hazard analysis to determine whether food safety hazards are reasonably likely to occur (FDA, 1995). If no hazards are identified, no HACCP plan is needed, but reassessments are required whenever procedures are changed significantly. Written HACCP plans for seafood must be specific to each location and type of seafood product. In response to the need to train members of the seafood industry in HACCP techniques, the National Seafood HACCP Alliance for Training and Education was created. This organization provides information on HACCP training courses, as well as sample HACCP models for various seafood products.

The Pathogen Reduction and HACCP system regulation of USDA establishes requirements in an effort to reduce the occurrence and numbers of pathogens on meat and poultry products and reduce the incidence of foodborne illness associated with consuming these products. Regulatory performance standards for pathogen reduction and end-product testing to determine whether the HACCP system meets those standards are basic to the USDA's approach to HACCP.

In January 1998, 312 large (over 500 employees) meat and poultry processing plants were required by FSIS to implement HACCP systems. About 6,100 medium and small (10 to 500 employees) processing plants will be required to implement HACCP systems within two years (FSIS, 1996b; FSIS, 1997; FSIS 1998). During the first three months of implementation of HACCP based inspection by large meat and poultry processors, enforcement actions against 13 plants were taken by FSIS to address system failures and improper implementation or misunderstanding of HACCP procedures by processors or inspectors (FSIS, 1998). In response to the need to train members of the meat and poultry industry, the international meat and poultry HACCP alliance was formed at Texas A&M University. The alliance is composed of industry associations and is affiliated with federal agencies, universities, and professional organizations.

Implementation of HACCP is the responsibility of food producers, processors, distributors, and consumers. The role of government is to ensure that HACCP programs are properly implemented throughout the food supply continuum by evaluation of HACCP plans and inspection of records indicating monitoring of critical control points. Implementation of this innovative approach requires a major educational effort and cultural change among federal inspectors. Adequate resources have not been provided to enable the implementation of HACCP-based inspection effectively, efficiently, and without disruption.

Voluntary Efforts

Trade associations.

Trade associations are formed, in part, to give members a unified voice on various issues of common interest, such as marketing, technical issues, and regulation. Trade associations have been established at the national, state, and regional levels for the following:

Food producers. Examples include the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), the Animal Health Institute, and the United Egg Producers.
Food processors. Examples include the National Food Processors Association (NFPA), the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA), the National Fisheries Institute, the American Meat Institute (AMI), and the International Dairy Foods Association.
Food ingredient suppliers. Examples include the International Food Additive Council and the Sugar Association.
Food retailers. An example is the Food Marketing Institute (FMI).
Food service establishments. Examples include the National Restaurant Association (NRA) and the American School Food Service Association.

Many trade associations have model policies and regulatory support programs to help members enhance food safety and meet regulatory requirements. The NFPA has developed model manuals on managing food product recalls, threats of tampering, and other crises; the manuals can be adapted to a company's needs. Videos and individual training programs are also available to members. The NFPA laboratories historically have helped members and FDA work out questions on the safety of canned and other processed foods (Rhona Applebaum, NFPA, personal communication to committee, April 1998). An industry initiative in the early 1970s led to the low-acid canned foods regulations.

Consumer Groups

Consumer organizations play important roles in the promotion of food safety, including its regulatory aspects. Some of these organizations-such as Consumers Union, the Consumer Federation of America, and the National Consumers League-were formed for general consumer protection purposes. Others-such as the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), Safe Tables Our Priority, and Public Voice for Food and Health Policy-coalesced primarily around issues of food safety and quality. As opinion leaders, these groups focus public attention on issues of concern, often seeking improved regulatory efforts and outcomes. Some of them, most notably Consumers Union and CSPI, have the scientific, financial, and public information resources to engage in product testing and surveillance and to disseminate their test results. For example, a story about the microbiological safety of poultry, published by Consumers Union in Consumer Reports in March 1998, received wide media coverage and effectively focused public attention on food safety concerns.

Professional Organizations

Professional organizations offer expertise to assist both research and regulatory processes. Because members are typically professionals working in all areas of a discipline (industry, government, and academe), these organizations also can offer a more balanced view of issues than might be obtained from experts in any one sector alone. Examples of these organizations include the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT); the American Society for Microbiology; the International Association of Milk, Food, and Environmental Sanitarians; and the Association of Food and Drug Officials. These organizations deliberate and comment on proposals concerning food safety technical and regulatory issues, develop and publish model codes, provide training to industry, sponsor symposia and seminars at annual meetings, publish authoritative technical journals (for example, Food Technology and the Journal of Food Protection), and publish valuable reference books. A recent example is a document that IFT submitted to the committee, Guiding Principles for Optimum Food Safety Oversight and Regulation in the United States (IFT, 1998).

Universities are actively involved in the food safety system in many ways. Training and continuing education for professionals are key roles played by academe. Specifically designed courses educate inspectors in the health hazards associated with foods, in inspection procedures for identifying foodborne hazards, and in methods used to eliminate these hazards. These programs have been conducted at Texas A&M University for FSIS inspectors and at several other cooperating universities for FDA inspectors. Universities also train state and local regulatory professionals and provide periodic programs on food safety to update producers, processors, retailers, nutritionists, and health professionals. Through outreach and public information programs, universities help the mass media and consumers understand and act on food safety concerns. FDA has cooperative research programs at the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the University of Maryland and at the National Center for Food Safety and Technology at the Illinois Institute of Technology. These programs provide research data necessary to support changes in food safety regulations. For example, proper risk assessment for exposure to a mycotoxin requires knowledge about the stability of mycotoxins during food processing. Recycling is generally to be encouraged, but research on food packaging made from recycled materials would first be necessary to determine the safety of such practices, because nonfood products might have migrated into the recycled materials.

Failures of food safety can be costly for the food industry. Injured consumers might recover compensation if they are able to trace their illness to a particular food (which is not always possible). In most states, injured consumers benefit from the doctrine of strict product liability and do not have to prove any fault on the part of the producer or distributor if a food causes harm. Indeed, tainted food cases were largely responsible for the development and expansion of strict liability doctrine. Although the doctrine of strict liability (or recovery without proof of fault on the part of the seller) is controversial in some contexts, it has not elicited any substantial outcry with respect to food-related harms.

Because it might be difficult to show that one's illness was in fact food related and to trace it to a particular product, the risk of having to pay damages to consumers for harm is probably not a major incentive for food safety. However, sellers of food that is, or is said to be unsafe, face huge public relations risks, which often prove to be more effective in "regulating" industry. The public is quick to shun whole categories of food products alleged to be tainted, as sellers of cranberries (the pesticide scare of 1959), apples (the Alar scare in 1989), and strawberries (the California Cyclospora scare, which turned out to be caused by raspberries, of 1996), verify. Because many unprocessed food commodities do not carry brand names, a food safety failure can harm careful as well as careless producers. Brand name food producers recognize that a recall or problem with any of their products will have a negative effect throughout their product lines. Most large food companies therefore try to work with suppliers and retailers to ensure that their products are kept safe beyond their immediate premises; the brand name is what the consumer sees.

SURVEILLANCE

Human and Animal Disease

Surveillance for human foodborne diseases is primarily the responsibility of state and local health departments, which are required or authorized to collect and investigate reports of communicable diseases. Although specific reporting requirements vary by state, such common and serious bacterial foodborne pathogens as Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, and E. coli 0157:H7 are reportable in most states. In addition, recognized outbreaks of foodborne disease are reportable in most states regardless of cause. Investigations are conducted to identify cases of illness, determine their sources, and control outbreaks. Responsibility for the primary investigation of individual cases or outbreaks may lie with local and state health departments. This system results in regional disparities in the probability of detecting outbreaks and may affect the thoroughness of an investigation.

On a national level, the CDC collects data from the states on the occurrence of specific pathogens such as Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, and E. coli, and collects summary data on foodborne disease outbreaks investigated by local and state health departments. CDC conducts field investigations of foodborne diseases only at the request of state health departments. CDC also plays a role in coordinating investigations of multistate or international outbreaks. The FDA and FSIS are called into investigations when the safety of a food in their jurisdictions is questioned. The FDA and FSIS are charged with ensuring that foods implicated in a foodborne illness outbreak and traveling in interstate commerce are removed from the market. Most recalls of food products regulated by FDA and FSIS, whether requested by the agency or initiated by the private entity, are carried out voluntarily by the businesses that manufacture, distribute, or sell these products. By statute they must use different methods to achieve that charge; FSIS uses its recall authority and FDA requests voluntary recalls of hazardous food by industry.

The Food Safety from Farm to Table: National Food-Safety Initiative ( Appendix C ) includes plans to develop elements of an improved foodborne-disease surveillance system. Although it is intended to eventually provide a "new early warning system for foodborne disease surveillance," it takes only the first steps toward such a system. The first component of the system is the Active Foodborne Disease Surveillance System, known as FoodNet. This is a collaborative effort among the CDC, FDA, USDA, and states participating in CDC's Emerging Infections Program. FoodNet is designed to conduct population-based active surveillance of seven bacterial foodborne pathogens (Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, E. coli 0157: H7, Listeria, Yersinia, and Vibrio) and determine-through a series of surveys of laboratories, physicians, and the population-the magnitude of diarrheal illnesses and the proportion of these illnesses that are attributable to foods. FoodNet provides one model for studying emerging infections; however, its current focus is limited to these seven routinely identifiable pathogens ( Appendix C ).

A second major activity of the National Food Safety Initiative is the National Molecular Surveillance Network, or PulseNet, established by CDC in collaboration with state laboratories of public health. In 1996, standard protocols for subtyping E. coli 0157:H7 with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) were developed to more accurately identify routes of pathogen transmission. PFGE technology allows public health laboratories in different regions of the United States to share information through a national computer network. Epidemiologists can now trace and detect foodborne pathogens up to five times faster than previous surveillance methods (DHHS, 1998).

FSIS surveillance activities include monitoring programs for Listeria monocytogenes in cooked and ready-to-eat meat and poultry products; E. coli 0157:H7 in raw ground beef products, imported products, and food in retail establishments; and Salmonella in egg products.

In addition, FSIS conducts "swab tests on premises" to detect antibiotics in meat and poultry and "calf antibiotic and sulfa tests." These systems are being replaced with a new surveillance tool, the ''fast antimicrobial-screen test." The FSIS also operates a nationwide "residue violation information system" to check for drug, pesticide, and other chemical residues in slaughtered livestock and poultry and in processed eggs.

FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine has a new monitoring system to determine trends in antimicrobial resistance and changes in susceptibility. Samples from diagnostic laboratories, slaughter plants, farms, and public health settings are taken and compared for relative differences (Stephen Sundlof, Center for Veterinary Medicine, FDA, personal communication to committee, March 1998).

The National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) program, under the auspices of APHIS, is designed to serve as a comprehensive system to measure the incidence of and determine the trends in and economic burden of diseases in food producing animals on local, state, and national bases. The NAHMS is administered by the Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health and is closely associated with surveys and data from food animal commodity groups and state departments of agriculture.

USDA requires that certain animal diseases be reported, and each state also has its own listing of reportable diseases. USDA operates a national diagnostic laboratory reference center in two locations-the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa, and the Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory at Plum Island, New York. These centers monitor disease-eradication programs, some imported animal products, and reported occurrences of animal diseases across the country. A national infrastructure of animal health diagnostic laboratories across the country, associated with colleges of veterinary medicine or state departments of agriculture, provides an additional avenue for animal disease surveillance that is not federally mandated. These laboratories are excellent sources of information for identifying disease trends and new emerging disease conditions.

Chemical Residues and Environmental Contaminants

Responsibility for monitoring chemical residues and environmental contaminants in food is dispersed among many agencies; primary responsibility rests with FDA and several agencies in USDA, EPA, and NMFS. Frequently, one agency might be responsible for approving a chemical's use, while another is responsible for monitoring residues of that chemical in the food supply. For example, EPA is responsible for approving uses of pesticides on food crops and for setting tolerances, but the testing of foods for pesticide residues is the responsibility of USDA (for meat, poultry, and egg products) and FDA (for all other foods). Brief descriptions of agency programs follow; details can be found elsewhere (GAO, 1994b).

Food and Drug Administration

FDA implements the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act by monitoring foods to ensure that approved chemicals and environmental contaminants are within permissible levels. A wide variety of raw agricultural commodities, processed foods, and animal feeds are tested for pesticide residues, environmental contaminants (such as mycotoxins and heavy metals), industrial chemicals, animal drugs, and other potential contaminants.

US Department of Agriculture

The FSIS is responsible for monitoring meat, poultry, and eggs for pesticides, animal drugs, and environmental contaminants.

The AMS has responsibility to maintain standards for shell egg surveillance and to ensure the proper disposal of restricted eggs, which are shell eggs that may be dirty, cracked, leaking, or otherwise unsuitable for consumer purchase.

The GIPSA's Federal Grain Inspection Service provides federal quality and safety standards and a system for applying them to US grain for both domestic consumption and export.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), in conjunction with AMS, monitors chemical residues in foods via the Pesticide Data Program. The AMS collects data on pesticide levels as measured in fruits and vegetables, whereas NASS collects data from farmers about pesticide use on fruits, vegetables, nuts, and field crops.

Environmental Protection Agency

As noted above, EPA registers pesticides and pesticide excipients for use in the United States and establishes tolerances for food and feeds. Enforcement of tolerances is the responsibility of other agencies (FDA or FSIS). Therefore, EPA monitoring of pesticides and industrial chemicals in food is a limited part of its monitoring of these contaminants in the environment.

EPA is responsible for establishing criteria to be used by the states to develop water quality standards. Under the Clean Water Act, EPA has the authority to set standards to restore or maintain the integrity of the nation's waters, which directly affect the safety of fish, shellfish, and wildlife (as well as water for human consumption). EPA is also responsible for enforcing standards for drinking water set under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Water for food processing must be safe and potable as defined by these standards. (FDA regulates bottled water under separate regulations, although there are many cross-references to EPA regulations.)

National Marine Fisheries Service

NMFS conducts a voluntary inspection of seafood processing plants, fishing vessels, and seafood products. FDA has regulatory responsibility for ensuring seafood safety, and NMFS coordinates its inspection efforts with FDA's Office of Seafood Safety. FDA, working with the seafood industry, adopted a mandatory HACCP program for seafood in late 1995 (FDA, 1995).

Federal-State Cooperative Agreements

Many federal monitoring programs rely on cooperation with state agencies for some aspects of administration. For example, FDA has a memorandum of understanding with the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments, a voluntary organization of state officials, under which the states carry out much of the monitoring and enforcement to oversee the safety and wholesomeness of fresh milk and cream. A part of this responsibility is testing milk and cream for food animal drug residues. Some of FDA's contracts with the states cover programs to monitor pesticide residues in foods, drug residues in edible animal tissue, and toxins in shellfish.

The food producing and processing industries conduct substantial chemical surveillance as part of their own safety, quality, and regulatory compliance programs. Their focus is typically on pesticide residues, residues of veterinary drugs, mycotoxins, heavy metals, chemical contaminants, and bacterial pathogens that might be associated with foods. The extent and consistency of these programs are difficult to assess because the data are largely unavailable, except for a few databases maintained through trade associations. Although these programs play an important role in ensuring food safety, the best opportunity to establish an integrated monitoring system lies in the public sector, with oversight provided under regulatory authority. To that end, there might be opportunities for industry and agencies to share information more effectively.

TECHNICAL GUIDANCE AND EDUCATION

Government Activities

An array of government programs offers technical guidance and education on producing and processing safe foods. NMFS has developed one of the few federal programs to provide food safety technical guidance at the producer level. Meat, poultry, dairy, egg, produce, grain, and legume producers receive little or no federal technical assistance on food safety issues. FSIS inspectors and administrators are available to address food safety issues related to meat, poultry, and egg processing, while AMS certifiers provide processors of fresh cut produce advice on a "qualified through verification" program that includes implementation of HACCP plans. The FDA provides technical guidance on HACCP-related matters to processors of foods other than meat, poultry, and eggs.

Several federal programs provide consumer education on food safety issues. The USDA consumer hotline responds to thousands of consumer inquiries a year about food safety and prepares and distributes food safety tips for consumers. CDC, often in collaboration with FDA and USDA, prepares videos and brochures about safe food preparation and consumption by high-risk populations, such as people who are immunocompromised, pregnant, or elderly. A recently introduced "Fight BAC" program, jointly sponsored by USDA, DHHS, and the food industry, is a major effort intended to improve consumer education by using a combination of advertising techniques to attract public attention. USDA also has introduced a labeling program that requires inclusion of instructions for safe food handling on retail packages of fresh meat.

Many programs, in addition to or in partnership with those of the federal government, provide guidance and education on food safety. University extension programs address all aspects of food safety education from the producer to the consumer. Topics include the development and implementation of HACCP programs, audits of processing plants, process control, and safe food handling by food service workers. Extension personnel also respond to food safety questions asked by food producers, processors, distributors, retailers, and consumers.

Private Efforts

Professional societies such as the American Dietetic Association, the Society for Nutrition Education, and the IFT offer a wide variety of food safety and consumer education materials. For example, they offer training and continuing education courses, videos, brochures, and textbooks.

The primary mission of not-for-profit organizations, such as the International Food Information Council (IFIC) and the Food Allergy Network (FAN), is to provide educational information about foods to consumers, media, industry, and policymakers. Conferences, media guidebooks, videos, publications in cooperation with government agencies, and resource-rich Web pages are some of the technical and educational tools that IFIC and FAN use. The Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) seeks to improve public health by providing a neutral forum to examine the laws, regulations, and policies related to foods. FDLI sponsors courses, conferences, publications, and videos to accomplish this goal.

Trade associations host meetings, symposia, and workshops that address the food safety issues of producers, processors, retailers, and the food service industry. Associations such as the NFPA, AMI, the NCBA, the NPPC, GMA, FMI, the NRA, and the National Meat Association provide an array of programs to assist their members with food safety matters. Many food companies provide toll-free telephone numbers and Web addresses for consumers to pose questions and concerns regarding the safety of their products. Many companies also distribute brochures or leaflets with information about food product safety and safe food handling practices, which is sometimes incorporated in materials such as recipes and advertisements.

CONSUMER RESPONSIBILITY AND PERCEPTIONS

Public perceptions about food risks shape personal and household behaviors and create demand for or acceptance of governmental actions related to food safety (See Box 2-1). Perceptions of foodborne hazards by the public often differ from those of the scientific community. For many years, risks posed by chemicals in food have concerned the consumer more than the expert, while the reverse is true for microbial hazards (Wolf, 1992). Those disparate views seem to arise from the values, needs, and priorities that the different sectors apply as they judge the acceptability of risks. It has been suggested that the criteria used by the public to judge the acceptability of risks include such risk attributes as familiarity, choice (whether the risk is voluntary or imposed), controllability, memorability, dread, immediacy, detectability, and equity of the distribution of risks and benefits. The levels of dread and the degree to which a risk is voluntary culminate in an "outrage" factor, which has been used to predict the acceptability of a risk (Groth, 1991; NRC, 1989; Sandman, 1987; Scherer, 1991; Slovic, 1986, 1987; Slovic et al., 1979).

Cultural factors also play a role in public responses to food safety issues. Public acceptance of a risk and demands for protection have been described as related to values and views associated with such things as freedom of choice, government regulation, understanding of technology, credibility of science, preference for homemade or natural foods, and attribution of risks to fate (Dale and Wildavsky, 1991; Douglas, 1985; Douglas and Wildavsky, 1982; Fitchen, 1987; NRC, 1989).

BOX 2-1. Public Perceptions About Food Risks

Alan Levy, chief of the FDA's Consumer Studies Branch of the Office of Scientific Analysis and Support, sees a striking difference between consumer concerns and consumer behavior when it comes to safe food handling. From 1988 to 1993, research results showed consumer concern about food safety increased, while unsafe food handling practice by consumers also increased. Levy suggests several reasons for this "disconnect." For the last 30 years, he says, a dominant theme has been that we have the safest food supply in the world. Consumers have internalized this message and believe that a few remaining problems can be fixed by government controls, so that personal behavior has little effect. Failures that occur in processing plants and restaurants are likely to be far more newsworthy than sporadic cases of illness, and some consumers might not recognize problems caused by their own actions in their own homes. Focus group studies of the dangers of Vibrio vulnificus and the consumption of raw oysters reveals that many people were knowledgeable about the risks, considered themselves "experts," and felt that they knew how to control the risks. Even people who are fairly knowledgeable about food safety issues often have serious misconceptions about foodborne illness and its consequences. If the public does not see this as a serious problem, there will be little sense of urgency to change behavior. One way to break through ''is to give people a better picture of the magnitude of food safety problems and challenge people's understanding of themselves as experts." Levy says new data from the FoodNet surveillance system "may be the best way to challenge people's understanding of themselves as experts."

SOURCE: Adapted from Changing Strategies: Changing Behavior June 12-13, 1997. (USDA, FDA, CDC)

Consumer food handling practices are a critical control point in the management of food safety issues, especially hazards from pathogenic microorganisms. Yet many consumers in the United States fail to follow recommended practices, as indicated by surveys in which 26 percent of respondents reported not washing cutting boards after cutting raw meat, 50 percent said that they ate raw or undercooked eggs, 23 percent reported eating raw clams or oysters, and 23 percent reported eating undercooked hamburgers ( Appendix C ).

Lack of knowledge of safe food handling practices can contribute to risky practices, and traditional rules about safe food handling practices are incomplete with respect to some food safety hazards, such as risks posed by eating a raw egg or a rare hamburger. A 1996 study found that 98 percent of respondents knew that meat and poultry could contain harmful bacteria and 75 percent knew that harmful bacteria could be present in dairy and egg products. However, fewer than half the respondents knew that harmful bacteria could be present on fruits and vegetables. In spite of this, a 1997 survey found that 88 percent of Americans believed they were taking precautionary steps in food handling practices to prevent foodborne illness (Partnership for Food Safety Education, 1997a).

Recent research indicates that general misconceptions might explain the failure of many consumers to practice safe food handling: they believe that foodborne illness is limited to fairly mild gastrointestinal distress that is experienced shortly after eating, that food safety problems can be seen or smelled, and foodborne illness is viewed as something that happens to others and not to them (Partnership for Food Safety Education, 1997a).

Aggressive efforts are essential to promote awareness of the risks from foodborne illness and to increase the public's use of safe food handling practices. Representatives who spoke to the committee agreed with the importance of this task:

"I want my child to come home from school and remind me to follow food safety practices in the home the same way my nieces and nephews instruct me on why and how I should recycle my trash" (Rhona Applebaum, NFPA, personal communication to committee, April 1998).

Partnerships between government agencies and trade associations, professional organizations, and public interest groups are significant initial steps in instituting an aggressive campaign to promote consumers' understanding of actions to reduce foodborne risks. The Partnership for Food Safety Education developed the "Fight BAC" campaign, an ambitious and far-reaching education effort to educate the public about safe food handling (Partnership for Food Safety Education, 1997b). The campaign uses graphics and a public service announcement to promote four key principles for safe food handling: wash hands and surfaces often, prevent cross-contamination, cook foods to proper temperatures, and refrigerate foods promptly. The campaign builds on past efforts of government agencies and other groups to promote safe food handling practices by the public.

Adoption and use of those recommended practices will not be easily achieved. Individual behaviors are influenced by experience and by views of other important people in one's life, as well as by information received from experts. People are selective in their attention to risks, and their beliefs often change only slowly. Awareness of food risks and knowledge about recommended practices might not be reflected in behavior changes and risk reduction.

Safe food handling practices involve everyday behaviors that have many different dimensions and involve multiple resources, such as equipment, time, and skills. Changing those practices is more complicated than changing consumer preferences from one brand of a product to another, as is the aim in product advertising. Changing behaviors related to food handling is more complex than changing some other health behaviors, such as seatbelt use.

The time, attention, energy, and resources needed for the ambitious goal of reshaping the public's food handling practices must be recognized. Adequate resources and sustained program efforts over several years will be needed. Many causes compete for the public's attention, and professionals and community-based volunteers who are called on to assist in the campaign have competing demands on their time. A recent statement by Dr. C. Everett Koop in an independent panel report on food safety education emphasizes the vital importance of the goal: "Putting the country's resources behind public education on safe food handling is not only logical, it is absolutely essential. Now is the time to give this investment in basic information and public awareness the attention it deserves." (Partnership for Food Safety Education, 1997a).

THE ROLE OF MEDIA-GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIPS IN FOOD SAFETY EDUCATION

The popular media—television, print, and radio—have long been the primary channels for communicating food-related science to the public and they play a major role in shaping public attitudes toward food safety. Media interest in this subject continues to grow. One three-month survey of coverage of diet, nutrition, and food safety issues by 38 local and national news outlets found that discussions of foodborne illness accounted for about 10 percent of all topical discussions, nearly twice the figure in 1995 (IFIC, 1998).

Although increased media coverage of foodborne illness might be beneficial in drawing attention to serious issues, it can also contribute to consumer fear and result in misunderstandings about real and perceived risks. Experts are sometimes misquoted, information can be misinterpreted or presented out of context, and hype-prone headlines can quickly give a benign article an alarming spin. To the public, perception is reality; thus regulatory agencies and government officials cannot afford to avoid media contact or to remain silent when food safety debates emerge, regardless of whether the perceived danger is real or imagined.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Federal Research Activities

Most federal research on food safety is conducted or administered by the following agencies:

USDA: Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), and the Economic Research Service;
DHHS: FDA and National Institutes of Health (NIH);
Department of Commerce: NMFS;
The Department of Defense.

Food safety is a comparatively small part of the total research and development efforts of these agencies. Food safety is not at the top of the research agenda in any of the agencies, whether measured by budget share, staff, or management emphasis. Although definitive data are difficult to obtain, it appears that food safety does not dominate the agenda or the culture of the agencies; therefore food safety research is often difficult to defend and support, and it suffers during periods of shrinking budgets or crises that affect other items on the agenda.

Other federal agencies-such as CDC, APHIS, AMS, GIPSA, and FSIS—cooperate in research projects that use their infrastructure for data or sample collection. They also affect research through the development of improved diagnostic procedures, recognition of new problems, and through their surveillance and epidemiological activities.

The fragmented character and complexity of federal food safety research foster a culture of competition rather than collaboration among the agencies and scientists involved. It would require extraordinary efforts to develop and coordinate a federal food safety research agenda given the current organizational structure. The agencies recently established several interagency bodies or activities to coordinate research, for example, the ARS-FSIS annual workshop; a risk assessment consortium of FDA, USDA, EPA, and the University of Maryland; the USDA-university workshop on "Enhancing Cooperation in Food Safety Research and Education;" the FSIS Food Safety Research Working Group; and the National Science and Technology Council under the Office of Science and Technology Policy made up of representatives of FSIS, CSREES, ARS, FDA, CDC, and EPA. These efforts at coordination appear to have grown out of the increasing national concern about food safety. Both increased research and increased coordination of research are important components of the Food Safety from Farm to Table: National Food-Safety Initiative ( Appendix C ).

Research priorities and implementation strategies for common goals tend to be determined from an agency perspective rather than as part of an integrated national program. For example, the need for increased surveillance of and epidemiological research on human illness and human pathogens in farm animals is generally recognized. In response, CDC, USDA, and FDA are cooperating with several states to establish a national infrastructure (FoodNet) for household-level studies of human illness. The USDA's APHIS has a national infrastructure for conducting epidemiological studies of animal health, which has been used for on-farm surveillance and field studies on pathogens. This APHIS responsibility has now been assigned to FSIS, and the funding has been reduced. The FSIS strategy is to contract with other federal and state agencies for on-farm epidemiological studies that can be conducted without a national infrastructure. USDA was attempting to consolidate its food safety efforts, but it has reduced its critical capacity and scientific base in this field.

FSIS does not have research authority. ARS, a research agency, has the intramural character and top-down management structure to respond quickly to some of the changing needs of FSIS by redirecting, expanding, or sustaining projects or programs. FSIS formally communicates its research needs and priorities to ARS once a year. In addition, scientists and management from the two agencies jointly review work in progress and plans for the future at an annual workshop.

USDA separates its intramural (ARS and ERS) and extramural (CSREES) research into different agencies even though most other departments combine intramural and extramural programs. The extramural programs support networks of scientists at universities throughout the nation. These networks leverage federally funded research with the intellectual and physical resources of the universities and with state and private research funds. Some university research is investigator-initiated in response to federal programs (such as those of NIH and the CSREES National Research Initiative) designed to bring science to food safety research. Some is in the form of grants or contracts structured to meet the immediate research needs of regulatory agencies. Much of the university research funded by state or private funds is targeted at specific state, regional, or commodity problems that have national importance.

Not all research related to food safety is identified as such. For example, although NIH does not have a research program directed specifically at food safety, it conducts research on foodborne diseases within the overall NIH mission of research to understand disease processes in humans and devise intervention strategies to improve human health. NIH has provided much of the basic knowledge about the microorganisms that cause foodborne diseases. That basic knowledge provides openings for NIH, other agencies, and industry to conduct research and to develop diagnostic tests or other control strategies. Thus, NIH research on microorganisms provides many of the strategic underpinnings for much of the targeted food safety research conducted by other organizations. In the aggregate, the NIH budget for research related to food safety is slightly below the USDA food safety research budget ( Appendix E ). In contrast with USDA, the NIH extramural program is larger than the intramural one. NIH research is not well-integrated with research at regulatory agencies that are assigned specific authority for food safety.

University research is largely supported by private industry, under grants or contracts with private companies or commodity to conduct intramural research on food safety. The outcomes of the research are, for the most part, proprietary and are not available to federal agencies or the public. Although information from the research is not usually distributed as widely as that generated by public funds, the industrial research is a large and essential component of the national food safety research effort.

Application of New Technology

The current system is slow to adopt new technologies that can improve food safety due to potential for harm if inadequately evaluated. For example, approval of irradiation was complicated by the 1958 congressional decision that irradiation be regulated as a food additive (rather than as a process) in spite of the lack of evidence that irradiation added anything to the product (Olson, 1998). Subsequent extensive research in both the United States and other countries documented that irradiation is a safe and effective means of reducing the risk of exposure to foodborne pathogens, and contributed to the development of procedures for the irradiation of foods. FDA approved the use of this technology for spices in 1982, for controlling porkborne trichinosis in 1985, and for poultry in 1990. It established the maximal doses of radiation that could be used in these applications and required that irradiated products be so labeled. FSIS established rules for implementing irradiation technology after FDA granted its approval for pork and poultry. These approvals also established the minimal dose of radiation that could be used, specified the design of the required label, and established requirements for record-keeping and inspection.

There has been little demand for irradiated pork and poultry in the ensuing years. In the absence of any economic incentives for the industry to adopt the technology, there has been comparatively little education of consumers or producers about the process, and some individuals and groups have objected to any educational activities that might be seen as promoting the use of irradiation (FMI, 1998b). In 1997, FDA approved irradiation of beef and more intensive use of irradiation for pork and poultry, and FSIS is establishing procedures to implement the technology in these applications.

Once the procedures are established by FSIS, adoption of the technology will depend on consumer acceptance and other economic incentives to the industry. Among the economic incentives for industry to adopt and promote irradiation are the destruction of E. coli 0157:H7, an adulterant of ground beef and other foods that can result in product recalls, and extension of the shelf-life of products. These effects also benefit consumers. Consumer acceptance and demand are increasing somewhat; broad implementation will require substantial new investments in irradiation facilities and further development of FDA-approved packaging materials. However, it seems unlikely that irradiation of foods will increase markedly unless there is a change in the magnitude of educational effort on the principles, efficacy, and safety of irradiation.

INTERNATIONAL DIMENSIONS

Any assessment of the US food safety system must consider the effects of activities outside the United States. Food is vital everywhere; countries other than the United States also take measures to protect the safety of food consumed domestically. The dramatic increase in international food trade means that the diet in most countries includes food produced abroad. This can be enriching, both culturally and nutritionally, but it presents increasing challenges for regulators in the United States and elsewhere. Threats to food safety do not respect international boundaries, so all countries exporting to the United States must be included in a food safety system that assures that risks associated with imported foods do not undermine the safety of domestically produced foods. Although cultural and legal differences among countries are significant issues when considering the adoption of measures from other countries, the efforts of close trading partners to the United States can be instructive.

The scientific bases for food safety decision-making are generally published in the open literature and available internationally. The responses of foreign countries to threats faced in the United States might yield useful lessons for US regulators. The committee heard about and reviewed recent efforts by other governments to reform their food safety systems in response to recent concerns about disease transmission and food contamination ( Appendix D ).

Food Safety Efforts of Other Countries

Canada, Australia, and New Zealand have recently undertaken efforts to reform decentralized and fragmented food safety systems. The European Community and the United Kingdom have both taken preliminary steps toward centralizing their food safety efforts. Although the incentives for these efforts vary from country to country, there appear to be some common purposes, which include providing a single, consolidated focus for food safety efforts to enhance efficiency and reduce costs, responding to contemporary scientific developments, making use of external expertise, and fostering foreign markets for domestic food products. Steps have been taken largely to promote the interests of producers, processors, and regulators rather than the public health, but some health benefits will accrue.

In 1997, the Canadian government consolidated all federally mandated food inspection and quarantine services into a single federal food inspection agency, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). The goals of CFIA are to harmonize standards among federal, provincial, and municipal governments; to improve import and export controls and efficiency; and to enhance the international competitiveness of Canadian industry and products. As of April 1998, the agency was developing an integrated inspection system, streamlined food inspection, and a plant and animal health strategy for the entire food chain from input materials through production to retail sale and consumer use (CFIA, 1997, 1998). It has delegated the inspection activity to local governments.

Other Countries and Cooperatives

In July 1996, Australia and New Zealand established the Australian New Zealand Food Authority to develop and implement uniform food standards for the two countries. The European Commission has established the Food and Veterinary Office to monitor food hygiene, veterinary health, and plant health legislation within the European Union, and has embraced risk-assessment procedures to establish control priorities. In the United Kingdom, where food safety responsibility is divided between the Department of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the government in January 1998 proposed the establishment of an independent Food Standards Agency (MAFF, 1998).

Increasing trade in food has also produced opportunities for international cooperation in the evaluation of and response to food safety challenges. The Codex Alimentarius is perhaps the best known inter-governmental effort (FAO/WHO, 1997). Although the Codex is driven by a powerful desire to achieve uniform regulatory standards in the interests of trade, it also contributes to an elevation of food safety standards in many countries. In doing so, the Codex and similar efforts assist US regulators in keeping imported food relatively safe.

US Regulation of Imported Foods

The continuing internationalization of the US food supply poses a singular challenge. As food imports into the United States have increased dramatically in the last generation, questions have been raised about the government's ability to ensure the safety of imported foods (GAO, 1998). The production, processing, and shipment of food produced in the United States can, in theory, be subject to government monitoring from field to dinner table, but imported food is not subject to such oversight.

Theoretically, Congress could forbid the importation not only of food that does not meet all domestic standards but also of food whose production is not subject to oversight by US officials in the same fashion as if it were produced domestically. Such a policy would require exporting countries to allow regular inspections by US inspectors; this would be politically unlikely and very expensive. Accordingly, the United States has adopted different strategies for protecting the safety of imported food.

Both FDA and USDA take the position, as their laws require, that imported food meet the same standards of labeling, composition, and safety as domestically produced food. That goal seems obvious, but it is not easily achieved. However, a recent General Accounting Office (GAO) report found that FDA and USDA have adopted rather different approaches (GAO, 1998).

FDA relies primarily on physical inspection and chemical analysis of imported food under its jurisdiction, using a sampling system that results in examination of 3 percent of all imported lots (GAO, 1998). It also relies on its knowledge of, or agreements reached with, the regulatory systems of the countries providing imports, focusing more port-of-entry attention on foods from countries where food safety controls are thought to fall short of US requirements. FDA is authorized to refuse admission to foods that appear to be adulterated, misbranded, or manufactured under unsanitary conditions; FDA may request that US Customs provide samples for inspection. FDA, with host-country agreement, occasionally undertakes some overseas inspections of production and processing facilities.

GAO questions whether FDA is ensuring that imported foods meet domestic safety standards. Domestic food inspections by FDA have become less frequent in the last decade, just as its examinations of imported shipments have not kept pace with the growth of imports. More important, many pathogens and chemical contaminants that pose health risks are not readily detectable with the means available to FDA at the port-of-entry.

USDA follows a rather different approach. An exporting country can seek official certification of its domestic control system for meat and poultry as "equivalent" to that of the United States. Certification of equivalence is based on an on-site review of its performance. In cooperation with US Customs, USDA refuses imports of meat and poultry from any country whose domestic regulatory system is not judged "equivalent" to its own. Once a country's system is determined to be equivalent (which requires that it include the same sort of carcass-by-carcass examination that historically has characterized USDA's inspection approach), imports are accepted without inspection of individual shipments. About 40 countries are approved to export meat products and five to export poultry products to the United States (9 CFR 327.2(b); 381.196(b)).

The different systems of scrutiny of imports used by FDA and USDA largely mirror their different approaches to domestically produced food as is required since they must document domestic equivalence. History and statutory mandate, rather than scientific rationale, lead USDA to demand carcass-by-carcass inspection domestically. FDA, with its smaller budget, aspires to examine imports thoroughly but cannot do so. Neither approach is based on a rigorous assessment of risk. The major outbreak of foodborne illness traced to raspberries from Guatemala could not have been prevented by port-of-entry inspection, even if an inspection had taken place.

International competition and the desire for export markets are primary factors leading to changes in food safety systems. As free trade agreements have been signed, trade disputes have increasingly focused on technical standards and inspection requirements. Other countries have been forced to revise domestic standards to establish equivalence with trading partners. The United States may also need to be concerned about the relationship of our food safety system to international trade. One important concern is that our system be scientifically grounded so that its requirements are recognized as legitimate protections of safety rather than as trade barriers. This report does not address issues of the safety of foods and food products exported, but exports are a major component of many food companies. Thus, new approaches must improve food safety at home and meet requirements abroad.

Summary Findings: The Current US System for Food Safety
Has many of the attributes of an effective system;
is a complex, interrelated activity involving government at all levels, the food industry from farm and sea to table, universities, the media, and the consumer;
is moving toward a more science-based approach with HACCP and with risk-based assessment;
is limited by statute in implementing practices and enforcement that are based in science; and
is fragmented by having 12 primary federal agencies involved in key functions of safety: monitoring, surveillance, inspection, enforcement, outbreak management, research, and education.
Cite this Page Institute of Medicine (US) and National Research Council (US) Committee to Ensure Safe Food from Production to Consumption. Ensuring Safe Food: From Production to Consumption. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 1998. 2, The Current US Food Safety System.
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Food Safety Essay

Introduction.

Young children are always hungry, and we feed them different varieties of food. While buying them their favourite food, the first thing that comes to our mind is quality and hygiene. Normally people would not buy from a street vendor because we know that their food is open to many flies and insects, and we do not want to risk our children’s health. We will always look for a hygienic place to eat as it assures us that the food we get from there will also be of great quality. The given food safety essay will be useful for children to know the meaning and importance of food safety.

Food safety means ensuring that the food is safe to eat and that nobody falls ill from eating it. As parents, we will be careful to give them hygienic and healthy food but will children know what to eat or not to eat? So, by reading this short essay on food safety, they will be cautious of their food choices and the place they eat.

Importance of Food Safety

We know that food ensures our survival, but only a few of us realise that this same food can be a cause of many health problems if we are not careful about what we eat. In this food safety essay, we will see the factors that contribute to food contamination and how we can prevent it.

Even though we cannot see, there are lots of bacteria and germs present around us. It is easy for them to enter into the food we eat while preparing or cooking it. Though it may look delicious from the outside, these germs could make the food bad and thereby affect us when we eat it. There are also many food joints or restaurants that present stale food to their customers. In the end, we are the ones suffering from eating contaminated foods.

Eating such foods could affect our health badly, and some of us even lose our lives. So, it is important to ensure that the food is free from any contamination before giving it to people. Therefore, food safety is a significant aspect that we should take care of, which is discussed in this short essay on food safety .

Ways to Ensure Food Safety

In this part of the food safety essay, we will describe some of the ways to ensure food safety at home. We can also make our children a part of it so that they will better understand its significance. Every step starts at home, and children will quickly grasp what we do.

The short essay on food safety mainly discusses the basic steps to follow for food safety. The first and the most important point is to wash and clean all the vegetables and fruits that we buy from the market. It is best to keep cooked vegetables separate from the raw ones as there are chances that germs will spread from the latter. It is also essential to clean our hands, knives and utensils before we start preparing the food. Moreover, remember to keep the food in the fridge within a few hours of its making to prevent it from getting spoiled.

These simple and effective measures will be useful to avoid the contamination of food in our homes. So, let us introduce our kids to this food safety essay from BYJU’S to make them aware of the topic. You can find more engaging essays for children on our website.

Frequently Asked Questions on Food Safety Essay

What do you mean by food safety.

Food safety refers to a set of practices followed by us to maintain the quality of the food as well as prevent foodborne illnesses.

What are the important practices for maintaining food safety?

The key points to ensuring food safety are cleaning, separating raw and cooked vegetables, cooking well by checking temperatures, and storing food in safe places.

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Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes First-Ever National Drinking Water Standard to Protect 100M People from PFAS Pollution

As part of the Administration’s commitment to combating PFAS pollution, EPA announces $1B investment through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to address PFAS in drinking water

April 10, 2024

WASHINGTON - Today, April 10, the Biden-Harris Administration issued the first-ever national, legally enforceable drinking water standard to protect communities from exposure to harmful per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as ‘forever chemicals.’ Exposure to PFAS has been linked to deadly cancers, impacts to the liver and heart, and immune and developmental damage to infants and children. This final rule represents the most significant step to protect public health under EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap . The final rule will reduce PFAS exposure for approximately 100 million people, prevent thousands of deaths, and reduce tens of thousands of serious illnesses. Today’s announcement complements President Biden’s government-wide action plan to combat PFAS pollution.

Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, EPA is also making unprecedented funding available to help ensure that all people have clean and safe water. In addition to today’s final rule, EPA is announcing nearly $1 billion in newly available funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help states and territories implement PFAS testing and treatment at public water systems and to help owners of private wells address PFAS contamination. This is part of a $9 billion investment through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help communities with drinking water impacted by PFAS and other emerging contaminants – the largest-ever investment in tackling PFAS pollution. An additional $12 billion is available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for general drinking water improvements, including addressing emerging contaminants like PFAS.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan will join White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory to announce the final standard today at an event in Fayetteville, North Carolina. In 2017, area residents learned that the Cape Fear River, the drinking water source for 1 million people in the region, had been heavily contaminated with PFAS pollution from a nearby manufacturing facility. Today’s announcements will help protect communities like Fayetteville from further devastating impacts of PFAS.

“Drinking water contaminated with PFAS has plagued communities across this country for too long,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan . “That is why President Biden has made tackling PFAS a top priority, investing historic resources to address these harmful chemicals and protect communities nationwide. Our PFAS Strategic Roadmap marshals the full breadth of EPA’s authority and resources to protect people from these harmful forever chemicals. Today, I am proud to finalize this critical piece of our Roadmap, and in doing so, save thousands of lives and help ensure our children grow up healthier.”

“President Biden believes that everyone deserves access to clean, safe drinking water, and he is delivering on that promise,” said Brenda Mallory, Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality . “The first national drinking water standards for PFAS marks a significant step towards delivering on the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to advancing environmental justice, protecting communities, and securing clean water for people across the country.”

“Under President Biden’s leadership, we are taking a whole-of-government approach to tackle PFAS pollution and ensure that all Americans have access to clean, safe drinking water. Today’s announcement by EPA complements these efforts and will help keep our communities safe from these toxic ‘forever chemicals,’” said Deputy Assistant to the President for the Cancer Moonshot, Dr. Danielle Carnival . “Coupled with the additional $1 billion investment from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to help communities address PFAS pollution, the reductions in exposure to toxic substances delivered by EPA’s standards will further the Biden Cancer Moonshot goal of reducing the cancer death rate by at least half by 2047 and preventing more than four million cancer deaths — and stopping cancer before it starts by protecting communities from known risks associated with exposure to PFAS and other contaminants, including kidney and testicular cancers, and more.”

EPA is taking a signature step to protect public health by establishing legally enforceable levels for several PFAS known to occur individually and as mixtures in drinking water. This rule sets limits for five individual PFAS: PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA (also known as “GenX Chemicals”). The rule also sets a limit for mixtures of any two or more of four PFAS: PFNA, PFHxS, PFBS, and “GenX chemicals.” By reducing exposure to PFAS, this final rule will prevent thousands of premature deaths, tens of thousands of serious illnesses, including certain cancers and liver and heart impacts in adults, and immune and developmental impacts to infants and children.

This final rule advances President Biden’s commitment to ending cancer as we know it as part of the Biden Cancer Moonshot, to ensuring that all Americans have access to clean, safe, drinking water, and to furthering the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to environmental justice by protecting communities that are most exposed to toxic chemicals.

EPA estimates that between about 6% and 10% of the 66,000 public drinking water systems subject to this rule may have to take action to reduce PFAS to meet these new standards. All public water systems have three years to complete their initial monitoring for these chemicals. They must inform the public of the level of PFAS measured in their drinking water. Where PFAS is found at levels that exceed these standards, systems must implement solutions to reduce PFAS in their drinking water within five years.

The new limits in this rule are achievable using a range of available technologies and approaches including granular activated carbon, reverse osmosis, and ion exchange systems. For example, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, serving Wilmington, NC – one of the communities most heavily impacted by PFAS contamination – has effectively deployed a granular activated carbon system to remove PFAS regulated by this rule. Drinking water systems will have flexibility to determine the best solution for their community.

EPA will be working closely with state co-regulators in supporting water systems and local officials to implement this rule. In the coming weeks, EPA will host a series of webinars to provide information to the public, communities, and water utilities about the final PFAS drinking water regulation. To learn more about the webinars, please visit EPA’s PFAS drinking water regulation webpage . EPA has also published a toolkit of communications resources to help drinking water systems and community leaders educate the public about PFAS, where they come from, their health risks, how to reduce exposure, and about this rule.

“We are thankful that Administrator Regan and the Biden Administration are taking this action to protect drinking water in North Carolina and across the country,” said North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper . “We asked for this because we know science-based standards for PFAS and other compounds are desperately needed.”

“For decades, the American people have been exposed to the family of incredibly toxic ‘forever chemicals’ known as PFAS with no protection from their government. Those chemicals now contaminate virtually all Americans from birth. That’s because for generations, PFAS chemicals slid off of every federal environmental law like a fried egg off a Teflon pan — until Joe Biden came along,” said Environmental Working Group President and Co-Founder Ken Cook . “We commend EPA Administrator Michael Regan for his tireless leadership to make this decision a reality, and CEQ Chair Brenda Mallory for making sure PFAS is tackled with the ‘whole of government’ approach President Biden promised. There is much work yet to be done to end PFAS pollution. The fact that the EPA has adopted the very strong policy announced today should give everyone confidence that the Biden administration will stay the course and keep the president’s promises, until the American people are protected, at long last, from the scourge of PFAS pollution.”

“We learned about GenX and other PFAS in our tap water six years ago. I raised my children on this water and watched loved ones suffer from rare or recurrent cancers. No one should ever worry if their tap water will make them sick or give them cancer. I’m grateful the Biden EPA heard our pleas and kept its promise to the American people. We will keep fighting until all exposures to PFAS end and the chemical companies responsible for business-related human rights abuses are held fully accountable,” said Emily Donovan, co-founder of Clean Cape Fear.

More details about funding to address PFAS in Drinking Water

Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA is making an unprecedented $21 billion available to strengthen our nation’s drinking water systems, including by addressing PFAS contamination. Of that, $9 billion is specifically for tackling PFAS and emerging contaminants. The financing programs delivering this funding are part of President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative , which set the goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that have been historically marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.

Additionally, EPA has a nationwide Water Technical Assistance program to help small, rural, and disadvantaged communities access federal resources by working directly with water systems to identify challenges like PFAS; develop plans; build technical, managerial, and financial capacity; and apply for water infrastructure funding. Learn more about EPA’s Water Technical Assistance programs .

More details about the final PFAS drinking water standards:

For PFOA and PFOS, EPA is setting a Maximum Contaminant Level Goal, a non-enforceable health-based goal, at zero. This reflects the latest science showing that there is no level of exposure to these contaminants without risk of health impacts, including certain cancers.
EPA is setting enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels at 4.0 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS, individually. This standard will reduce exposure from these PFAS in our drinking water to the lowest levels that are feasible for effective implementation.
For PFNA, PFHxS, and “GenX Chemicals,” EPA is setting the MCLGs and MCLs at 10 parts per trillion.
Because PFAS can often be found together in mixtures, and research shows these mixtures may have combined health impacts, EPA is also setting a limit for any mixture of two or more of the following PFAS: PFNA, PFHxS, PFBS, and “GenX Chemicals.”

EPA is issuing this rule after reviewing extensive research and science on how PFAS affects public health, while engaging with the water sector and with state regulators to ensure effective implementation. EPA also considered 120,000 comments on the proposed rule from a wide variety of stakeholders.

Background:

PFAS, also known as ‘forever chemicals,’ are prevalent in the environment. PFAS are a category of chemicals used since the 1940s to repel oil and water and resist heat, which makes them useful in everyday products such as nonstick cookware, stain resistant clothing, and firefighting foam. The science is clear that exposure to certain PFAS over a long period of time can cause cancer and other illnesses. In addition, PFAS exposure during critical life stages such as pregnancy or early childhood can also result in adverse health impacts.

Across the country, PFAS contamination is impacting millions of people’s health and wellbeing. People can be exposed to PFAS through drinking water or food contaminated with PFAS, by coming into contact with products that contain PFAS, or through workplace exposures in certain industries.

Since EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan announced the PFAS Strategic Roadmap in October 2021, EPA has taken action – within the Biden-Harris Administration’s whole-of-government approach – by advancing science and following the law to safeguard public health, protect the environment, and hold polluters accountable. The actions described in the PFAS Strategic Roadmap each represent important and meaningful steps to protect communities from PFAS contamination. Cumulatively, these actions will build upon one another and lead to more enduring and protective solutions. In December 2023, the EPA released its second annual report on PFAS progress . The report highlights significant accomplishments achieved under the EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap.

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Every organization and every person involved with the food chain from farm and sea to table shares responsibility for the safety of food. Our "food safety system" includes producers, processors, shippers, retailers, food preparers, and, ultimately, consumers. The government plays an important role by establishing standards and overseeing their enforcement. Supporting roles are played by trade ...
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(PDF) Food safety and hygiene: A review
PDF | On Mar 1, 2020, Sahil Kamboj and others published Food safety and hygiene: A review | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate
Seafood Safety and Quality: The Consumer's Role
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration currently recommends that pregnant or breastfeeding women and children under age 12 should eat 2 to 3 servings (8 to 12 ounces) of a variety of different kinds of fish and shellfish each week. There is a large variety of different types of fish and shellfish in the marketplace.
Aims and scope
Aims and scope. The JCF publishes peer-reviewed original Research Articles and Opinions that are of direct importance to Food and Feed Safety. This includes Food Packaging, Consumer Products as well as Plant Protection Products, Food Microbiology, Veterinary Drugs, Animal Welfare and Genetic Engineering. All peer-reviewed articles that are ...
Food Safety Essay
The short essay on food safety mainly discusses the basic steps to follow for food safety. The first and the most important point is to wash and clean all the vegetables and fruits that we buy from the market. It is best to keep cooked vegetables separate from the raw ones as there are chances that germs will spread from the latter.
Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes First-Ever National Drinking
WASHINGTON - Today, April 10, the Biden-Harris Administration issued the first-ever national, legally enforceable drinking water standard to protect communities from exposure to harmful per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as 'forever chemicals.' Exposure to PFAS has been linked to deadly cancers, impacts to the liver and heart, and immune and developmental damage to ...

81 Food Safety Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

✍️ Food Safety Essay Topics for College

Enhancing Food Safety: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration (2010)

STUDY APPROACH

CONCLUSIONS

Adopting a Risk-Based Decision-Making Approach to Food Safety

Creating a Data Surveillance and Research Infrastructure

Integrating Federal, State, and Local Government Food Safety Programs

Enhancing the Efficiency of Inspections

Improving Food Safety and Risk Communication

Modernizing Legislation to Enhance the U.S. Food Safety System

Achieving the Vision of an Efficient Risk-Based Food Safety System

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Consumers’ awareness of food safety from shopping to eating

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Example Of Food Safety Essay

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Genetic Modification of Food

The Use of Drugs in Food Production

Solutions to Food Safety Issues

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The Importance of Food Safety: Top Food-Related Public Health Issues

Why Is Food Safety Important?

4 Food-Related Public Health Issues

Food Insecurity

The New Era of Smarter Food Safety

Chemical Contaminants in Food

The Lingering Impact of COVID-19

Promote the Importance of Food Safety as a Public Health Professional

Food Safety and Food Security

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Cleaning and Disinfection: Improving Food Safety and Operational Efficiency in Food Processing

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Expert Interview: Paul Young, Ph.D., Speaks about Food Safety Capacity Building

Ensuring Safe Food: From Production to Consumption.

2 The Current US Food Safety System

Federal Regulatory Programs

State and Local Regulatory Systems

HACCP Systems

Voluntary Efforts

Consumer Groups

Professional Organizations

Human and Animal Disease

Chemical Residues and Environmental Contaminants

Food and Drug Administration

US Department of Agriculture

Environmental Protection Agency

National Marine Fisheries Service

Federal-State Cooperative Agreements

Government Activities

Private Efforts

BOX 2-1. Public Perceptions About Food Risks

Federal Research Activities

Application of New Technology

Food Safety Efforts of Other Countries

Other Countries and Cooperatives

US Regulation of Imported Foods

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Food Safety Essay

Importance of Food Safety

Ways to Ensure Food Safety

Frequently Asked Questions on Food Safety Essay

What are the important practices for maintaining food safety?

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Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes First-Ever National Drinking Water Standard to Protect 100M People from PFAS Pollution

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