Federal Regulations and Safety
The Food Regulations system is controlled a substantial amount by the government. Whether the government wanted that role or not society forced them into taking control in the early parts of the twentieth century. Americans have a tremendous amount of confidence in the government by trusting them when they determine whether food is safe or whether it isn’t. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are the government agencies that handle the different issues that come up about food regulation in the United States. Whether Americans agree or disagree these four programs were designed
…show more content…
to help fight against and protect the people of the United States from the illusion the government displays. In 1958 the United States had created an amendment called the Food Additives Amendment of 1958. The reason this amendment was created was because of the large number of concerns with the safety of the new additives that were put into food. The Delaney Clause was one of many clauses that tried to control what additives were put into foods that humans eat. The Delaney Clause is a part of the 1958 Food Additives Amendment (section 409) to the 1954 Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) (1). The Delaney Clause regulates pesticide residues in processed foods, there cannot be any pesticides that are known to cause cancer in animals in the foods that humans eat. Regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the National Research Committee had four recommendations. The first of the four recommendations was that old and new pesticides would be regulated on processed foods as well as raw foods and be using the same standards for both (1). Secondly, there would be a risk standard of one and one million for the possibility of carcinogenic pesticides possibly applied to crops (1). The third recommendation was that the EPA would produce a plan so that the most suspect pesticides were reduced on the most consumed crops as well as comply with the law, including the Delaney Clause (1). Finally the fourth recommendation was that the tools used to inspect and analyze were improved and met the requirements of the environment, and food production (1). Following the four recommendation the EPA came to the conclusion in 1988 that the pesticides that had a “de minimis” were to be excused from the Delaney Clause (1). The Delaney Clause came under plenty of scrutiny, the main issue was that the tolerance level should be set at a level that not only protects the consumer’s health but also protects against an adequate wholesome and economical food supply (1). Currently the EPA is imposing the Delaney Clause and is also encouraging congress to legislate the “de minimis” standard as a necessary approach to food safety for the United States (1). The Food Safety Modernization Act is the most recent of the food safety laws. Nearly seventy years since the last law was established and the U.S. is working to guarantee that contamination is prevented and working to provide safety for the people of the United States. The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010 (FSMA) was passed by congress and will be signed by President Obama by the end of the 2015 year.
The Food Safety and Modernization Act is the most recent expansion of the FDA authority the last expansion was the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act in 1938 (2). The FDA has been looking for more power over the last couple of decades with the Food Safety and Modernization Act the FDA now has a number of new powers such as mandating recall authority (2). Prevention of food safety, improving the safety of imported foods, detection of and response to food safety problems, and miscellaneous provisions are the four titles that the FSMA is divided into …show more content…
(2). The Food Safety and Modernization Act hasn’t faced many controversies at this time, although earlier versions of the house and senate bill didn’t survive the legislation process (2).
Giving the FDA the authority to levy civil fines for any prohibited act, giving FDA authority to quarantine food are just two of the many provisions that did not survive (2). The Food Safety Modernization Act has brought a few new regulatory requirements as well as given the FDA new powers. With Food Safety Modernization Act headed on the route it is headed, it has the potential to move the FDA regulation of food in the direction that the USDA regulatory model represents (2).
The Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act is a bill that is a part of an attempt to help bring back the importance of a child’s nutrition. While the United States funding for schools nutrition is low this act was designed to help bring back the importance of breakfast and lunch during school for children. This act was developed to improve food resources for students so they are able to perform their best in the
classroom. The Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act (HHFKA) was signed on December 13, 2010 by President Obama (3). The Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act is a 5 year program that provides support to schools that are in need of better breakfast and lunch programs (3). It also provides help to programs such as Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women as well as Summer Food Service Program (3). One of the many expansion ideas that the Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act has is to expand access to drinking water. School in particular struggle with having available water for student particularly during lunch. Although there are plenty of water fountains, those can only be accessed for a short period of time by providing water during lunch students would be able to continuously get water. Another great feature that the Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act offers is the ability to help establish a farm network in schools such as creating gardens (3). By doing this schools would be able to ensure that more local foods are being used (3). The idea behind creating gardens in school allows student to understand how to grow food and show how vital all the pieces of the puzzle are to growing food. The controversy that the Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act is a little unique. The Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act has plans to boost and improve many areas of society, by doing all this they have to have some requirements. Some of those requirements are; school districts are required to be audited every three years, schools are required to make information more available, and schools are required to provide training and technical assistance (3). Although all of these don’t sound like much controversy the majority of them would cost money the school would have to be able to come up with. The Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act has provided much need support to school programs as well as programs for society, however the program only last until September 30, 2015. With the deadline ahead much is undecided what congress and the president will do to continue to improve these types of programs. The 1958 Food Additives Amendment of 1958 was a part of the GRAS list develop meant in the United States. The whole objective of the GRAS list was to eliminate any concerns with chemicals or added substance and to exempt them from the food additive tolerance requirements. The GRAS list faced many problems with what should and shouldn’t be exempt from the list and raised plenty of concern from the American people. Any Substance that is intentionally added to food is classified as a food additive and is subject to pre-market approval by the FDA unless the substance that was used is generally recognized as safe or also known as GRAS (4). Generally recognized as safe was introduced during the 1958 Food Additive Amendment to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. By 1961, the FDA had a list of food that were regulated and that are generally recognized as safe under certain conditions of use (4). Following the FDA’s release of the GRAS list many manufacturers where concerned whether the GRAS list was actually justified and eventually led to the removal of cyclamate salts from the list (4). There were a few controversies to the GRAS list, in the early 1970s President Nixon required the FDA to reexamine the safety of the GRAS list. The FDA went on to announce that a review was being done on the GRAS list and in 1997 the FDA proposed to replace the affirmation with a notification procedure making it the GRAS notification (4). The people of the United States like to know that they are being taken care of by the government. By putting its best foot forward, the government is making tremendous strides from where it was to where it is now. With advancements in technology and new laws in place the United States is constantly trying to improve the health of the American people. With the help of the Delaney Clause, Food Safety Modernization Act, Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act, and GRAS list, Americans can expect the best because they are receiving the best. Thanks to these programs families can sleep a little easier at night knowing that their health and safety are a major priority to the United States government. References 1. Holloway R. Texas Agricultural Extension Service. The Delaney Clause. Available at: http://ipm.ncsu.edu/safety/factsheets/delaney.pdf 2. Summary of Food Safety Modernization Act. Natural Cotton Council of America. Available at: http://www.cotton.org/issues/2013/foodsafe.cfm 3. Child Nutrition Reauthorization Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Let’s Move. Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/Child_Nutrition_Fact_Sheet_12_10_10.pdf 4. Generally Recognized as Safe. GMA background and summary of regulatory requirements. Available at: http://www.gmaonline.org/filemanager/GRAS_Background%20and%20Summary%20of%20Regulatory%20Requirements.pdf
Regulating what the government should control and what they should not was one of the main arguments our founding fathers had to deal with when creating our nation, and to this day this regulation is one of the biggest issues in society. Yet, I doubt our founding fathers thought about the idea that the food industry could one day somewhat control our government, which is what we are now facing. Marion Nestles’ arguments in the book Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health deal with how large food companies and government intertwine with one another. She uses many logical appeals and credible sources to make the audience understand the problem with this intermingling. In The Politics of Food author Geoffrey Cannon further discusses this fault but with more emotional appeals, by use of personal narratives. Together these writers make it dramatically understandable why this combination of the food industry and politics is such a lethal ordeal. However, in The Food Lobbyists, Harold D. Guither makes a different viewpoint on the food industry/government argument. In his text Guither speaks from a median unbiased standpoint, which allows the reader to determine his or her own opinions of the food industries impact on government, and vise versa.
...ous tests (Law, 2004). They also must now have the FDA’s approval in order for a certain food or drug to be sold directly to consumers. Also the marketplace has changed, due to new ways to process the product in a more safe and effective manner. There were also changes due to political, economical, social, and cultural changes since 1906. In conclusion, the Food and Drug Act paved the way for the Progressive movement and food safety in America.
Though proponents of this method argue that it has lowered meal debt and the amount of families failing to pay, Stacy Koltiska refutes this claim by saying: “[The ones making these policies] are suits at a board meeting… They are not the ones facing a child and looking them in the eye and taking their food away.” While it is irrefutable that debt in schools is a problem that must be tackled, it is not a justifiable excuse to take a child’s midday meal out of his or her hands and throw it into a trash can because his or her parents can not put money into their child’s lunch account. There is no excuse for denying a child a hot meal or making them go hungry during the school day for something that is not their fault. Their dietary and nutritional needs are not a bargaining tool for the school system to use under any
The Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act has taken over schools nationwide and needs to be stopped. There are more negatives than positives that go along with this act and there needs to be an end. Schools should not have to waste money on expensive food to have it not be eaten. Students should be able to enjoy what the lunchroom has to offer. The students do not buy these lunches so the food goes to waste. In 2012, when the Healthy Hunger Free-Kids Act was made students stopped eating their school lunches and schools began to lose great amounts money. It 's beneficial to encourage healthy eating habits with schools but this act needs to be reformed.
Pomeranz, Jennifer L. "A Comprehensive Strategy To Overhaul FDA Authority For Misleading Food Labels." American Journal Of Law & Medicine 39.4 (2013): 617-647. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 Apr. 2014.
The act of manufactures labeling of our foods products in terms of the ingredients a particular product contains and the nutritious facts is sometimes taken for granted, we often see the labels on our food products, but ignore them because we’re so used to seeing them in our daily lives. Surprisingly, food product labeling, specifically that pertaining to allergen warnings, were not always available to consumers until a government mandate in 2004 (FALCPA). I think part of the reason for such a lateness in regulation was due to a social stigma regarding allergies, that having them was some sort of natural selection and not an issue that should be taken care of. Another surprising notion I came across was that although there was no government regulation, manufactures of food products took a good amount of initiative in letting their consumers know of potential allergens in their products.
The momentum generated by the passage of the Meat Inspection Act helped secure the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act, which had been stalled in Congress since 1905. With these two pieces of legislation, the federal government took important steps to assure the public that the food they were eating met minimu...
After Upton Sinclair, a muckraker journalist, released The Jungle he met with the president of the united states and he passed two acts to protect the public from food that wasn’t proven safe. The acts were called The Pure Food and Drug act and The Meat Inspection act, These acts protected the people from food that was packaged in gross and dirty conditions. These helps reduce foodborne diseases like Salmonella. These acts improved food safety directly and were passed in 1906 but came into effect in 1907. In 1912
To give background on the FDA and USDA for better understanding the USDA is responsible for meat and poultry, while the FDA is responsible for dairy, seafood, and vegetables. The USDA was founded in 1862 to encourage food creation in the United States (Sherrow 15). Dr. Peter Collier was the first person to suggest rules and laws for the safety of our food (Sherrow 15). Congress passed the Meat Inspection Act in 1890. The Act made the USDA inspectors inspect all pig products (Sherrow 15). In 1906 the Comprehensive Meat Inspection Act was passed. The act assigned inspectors from the UDSA to the United States’ 163 slaughter houses. In the slaughter houses the meat needed to be inspected before and after slaughter (Sherrow 15-16). The FDA is also responsible for protecting food from terrorists and anyone who wants to try to harm the public (Wilson). The FDA oversees 167,000 farms in the United States and 421,000 worldwide farms. The FDA only has 1,100 inspectors to inspect those farms (Wilson). The number of inspections done by the FDA went from 4,573 in 2005 to 3,400 in 2006 (Sherrow 34). According to the Center of Science in the Public Interest the FDA has no authority for prev...
On January 4, 2011 President Obama signed into law The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). This law has shed new light on the safety and security of our food supply. The last update to the food safety laws in the United States was in 1938. The food safety modernization act pays special attention at trying to modernize the food safety policies in the United States in hopes to prevent problems and concerns before they happen. As we all know, most of our food comes from overseas or sometimes from your neighboring state. The food products travel by car, truck, airplane, boat, or even train. We are all very happy to be receiving our bananas from Costa Rica and all of our other fresh fruits and vegetables that are imported into the United States, but we never stop to think about what pathogens are contaminating our produce and other foods on the way over and if they are safe for us to eat. In an article by Neal Fortin, he states that the law also gives the FDA new standards to hold imported foods to the domestic food standards and it also encourages the FDA to establish and develo...
Before this meat in[ection act came along the workers of the meat factory would throw meat on “damp and soggy,” floor and would still use that meat and packet it and sell it to American. (Doc B) They would shoved the dirty meat and didn’t care about safety of American. In fact the workers them self were dirty,they were “ utter ignorance of cleanliness or danger to health.” Because of such packeting skills, there came a lot of death because people would get sick and not know why and die. After all this mess, the FDA came into play. The people now had a chance to know what toxic ingredients that were in were in the food. The purpose of this document is to show America the what kind of bad killing food we were eating which cause disease or even
...ade such uproar that the Pure Food and Drug Act was made, and the Food and Drug Administration was later created to insure safe conditions for consumers and workers.
At this point, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has started increasing regulations for prepared foods, however, only a few years ago they had some vague laws concerning these foods and companies could get away a lot more than they can now. One of the reasons for this was that the FDA was more concerned about the certain effects store bought food had on people and were less concerned about misleading labels on packaging. However, they seem to have become more aware of the fact that a lot of companies are tricking consumers into believing that their product is the best, and the FDA has started to regulate companies that have misleading advertisements.
With the implementation of the “Healthy Kids Hunger-Free Act” schools are not serving as many lunches and participation is decreasing. According to the Government Accountability Office (GOA), “Nationwide, student participation declined by 1.2 million students(or 3.7 percent) from school year 2010-2011 through school year 2012-2013, after having increased steadily for many years”(sec. 1). The school lunches became more distasteful and bland; the combinations of foods did not make sense, and the portion sizes decreased significantly. In order to support the cafeteria
First off, The government of the United States of America is ultimately responsible for keeping our foods safe. Many of the Presidents of the major food companies also obtain government jobs. When a problem occurs with food and a food has to be recalled a change has to be made. Someone comes up with a law to make sure that the problem does not occur again. The government evaluates the law and either passes or denies it. The type of foods that we buy from the grocery store were pre evaluated by the government. I think the reason why most foods are unsafe and are still being obtained by local residents is because the major food companies work and make deals with government so