Food Safety Policy Update: September 23, 2009
Russell Libby, MOFGA Executive Director
Food safety issues continue to move forward on multiple policy fronts at the Federal level. Between Congress, FDA, and USDA, three major proposals are being considered.
Legislation. The House of Representatives passed HR 2749 at the end of July. The question now is whether the Senate will act this Fall. Senate Bill 510 will be the initial focus of discussion, and it has bipartisan support.
Just as with the House Bill, the major issue from MOFGA’s perspective is a definitional one. What kind of businesses, including farmers, need to be covered by Federal food safety oversight? Is that decided based on the type of business (retail sales vs. wholesale), or on the basis of the size of business? How are farms to be treated? Does USDA oversee food safety on farms and does FDA oversee processors? And if a farm does on-farm processing, which agency is responsible.
Through a long series of discussions, including four trips to Washington so far this year, this has become the critical hinge for discussions. MOFGA and a variety of organic and sustainable agriculture groups have been trying to develop clear definitions, and we’ve had continued discussions with a range of consumer groups to see where there might be agreement.
It’s clear that the conversation starts from a point where everyone, whether farmer or processor, has a shared food safety responsibility. But the solutions need to be appropriate to the size and type of activity. In discussions earlier this month, it is clear that this message is being heard. FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said this month that “In the agricultural sector, FDA will carefully focus its standard setting on produce commodities and issues that are important for improving food safety, and we will be very sensitive to the wide diversity of practices, which we know vary by commodity, geography and scale of operation.” We want to make sure that both FDA and Congress pay attention to these issues.
Leafy Green Marketing Agreements. Since the major outbreak of e. coli in spinach in California three years ago, the large national shippers have worked to upgrade their systems for food safety oversight. Over time that evolved into the California Leafy Greens Agreement, where large processors and shippers developed standards for farm production and processing, and the California Department of Agriculture enforces the standards through inspections. There is a push to turn this into a national model. USDA is currently holding hearings around the country on whether, and if so, how, to implement this idea. MOFGA, as part of the National Organic Coalition, is opposing this proposal as a precedent that lets each industry work its way out of Federal oversight by setting up its own set of standards and then preventing farmers who don’t meet them from entering major national markets. Some of the National Organic Coalition comments at the first California hearing are posted at: http://www.nationalorganiccoalition.org/testimony.html
FDA Produce Standards. In late July, FDA issued draft produce standards for melons, tomatoes, and leafy greens. Comments on these proposals are due in late October. MOFGA will be submitting comments urging FDA to meet the same standards that Commissioner Hamburg laid out in her September talk. The standards, as now written, focus a lot on keeping extensive records of production and processing systems. We will be encouraging them to focus their efforts on those businesses that ship into commingled markets where the identity of the farm and its product is often mixed with that of many other farms. We hope to have draft comments for MOFGA farmers to review and submit in early October.
If you are interested in discussing any of these issues in more detail, please feel free to contact me at the MOFGA office or via e-mail, <rlibby@mofga.org>.
Last Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2749 - The Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, by a large margin. The bill was substantially amended to reflect concerns from the Agriculture Committee, but many issues raised by organic and sustainable farmers went unaddressed, particularly: making sure standards are compatible with the National Organic Program; addressing conservation practices; and scale-appropriate standards and fees. On the floor, Congressman John Dingell, principal sponsor, agreed to address the organic standards and conservation practices in the final bill. Action now moves to the Senate, where S 510 - The Food Safety Modernization Act, will be the prime legislation. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released draft guidance documents for leafy greens, melons, and tomatoes on Thursday. These are open for comment for 90 days. MOFGA will organize a meeting to discuss them prior to submitting our comments. There is a major emphasis on sanitizing washes in the leafy green standards -- essentially recommending dilute bleach to wash greens before selling them. This is an example of standards that need to be scale-appropriate. See amendments to H.R. 2749. See FDA guidelines. S 510 is not available for viewing online at the moment.
Food Safety Update - Action Alert
Congress To Vote Soon
Congress may vote on HR 2749, The Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, as soon as Friday, July 24th.
MOFGA has worked closely with both Energy and Commerce Committee staff and the Maine delegation to make the bill better by:
- Focusing on national and international companies that process and distribute most food
- Making sure farms aren’t inadvertently treated as processors, subject to a $500 annual facility fee, or regulated beyond their impact on the food system
- Making sure that any produce standards that FDA develops consider the importance of diversity, natural resources, and existing organic standards
Part of MOFGA's work with the National Organic Coalition and National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition has been to develop amendments that will:
- Clarify that farmers are not facilities
- Make fees fair—low or no fees for small businesses, larger fees for larger businesses
- Consider whole farm system when establishing food safety standards
Please call your Representative’s office and encourage him/her to support HR 2749 ONLY if the ideas included in the proposed Farr/Kaptur amendment are included in the final bill.
Representative Mike Michaud: 202-225-6306
Representative Chellie Pingree: 202-225-6116 (Note: Rep Pingree has already signed on to the proposed amendment—please thank her for that, as well.)
The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on H.R. 2749 - The Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 today. MOFGA supports the Farr-Kaptur amendments, which will provide additional support for family farmers. Elements of those amendments are likely to be included in the final version before the vote. Under a proposed committee amendment, most farmers who process and sell directly to consumers would be excluded from the definition of a facility that is required to register with the Food and Drug Administration and pay an annual fee. MOFGA continues to work with farm groups across the country to get clarity about how farms and specialty food processors will be regulated. Votes on the bill are not yet scheduled.
Food Safety Legislation: A Chance to Focus on What’s Important
Russell Libby, Executive Director
April 30, 2009
Congress is currently considering a number of pieces of food safety legislation. In the House, HR 759, The Food and Drug Administration Globalization Act of 2009, is likely to be the key starting point.
After a long stretch where FDA simply has not had the resources to keep up with changes in an increasingly complex and global food system, these bills are trying to establish new standards. However, the bills run the risk of making it harder for farmers and small food processors to supply their customers, thus making the food system as a whole more concentrated. In particular, the growing “local food” and “identity-preserved” markets could face major entry barriers or regulatory costs.
A few overarching principles:
- Enforce existing laws first. FDA is already charged with enforcement of a wide range of food safety laws. They need the financial resources to do the job properly.
- Focus on the core problems. Most of the food safety outbreaks that reach the level of public notice are associated with national, and sometimes international, distribution systems. This is where FDA, and USDA, should focus their efforts.
- Do no harm. This principle holds as true now as it has for over 2000 years. One of our critical concerns is that the rapid adaption of food safety protocols is going to make it harder, not easier, to build strong connections between farmers and the public.
Food safety is a shared responsibility. Whether the food system is a simple one-- harvest lettuce in the garden, take it to the sink, wash it, and prepare a salad—or a complex one—buy truckloads of spinach from several different farms, wash, clean and pack it, and ship it to multiple market outlets—several responsibilities are shared. Farmers need to use the best possible growing systems for producing the food. Packers and processors need to be able to trace food from the farm to the next level of the food system, and are responsible for handling food safely and properly. Distributors and retailers need sufficient records to be able to track food back to supply points. Finally, the person who prepares the meal—whether it’s at a restaurant, an institution, or a home kitchen—needs to prepare the food well. Obviously, the more complex the system is, the more steps between farmer and table, the more important the role of FDA and USDA in the process.
It’s not all about the microbes. Sterility is not a solution. Although the most recent large food safety outbreaks have been focused on various forms of microbial contamination, we believe that it’s important to be looking at the impacts of the whole system. In HR 759, Section 104 (b) 2 includes chemical hazards as one of the items that should be monitored in fruits and vegetables, but it’s not clear whether that specifically includes pesticide residues or where they would be addressed. Off-farm impacts of pesticides and fertilizers aren’t addressed directly by food safety standards—but a food system that produces safe food has to consider these issues.
The role of organic and identity-preserved products:
Meeting the standards of the National Organic Program means that some of the critical elements of a food safety strategy are also addressed. Included in the rule, followed by the thousands of organic farmers across the country, and also included in various forms by other groups, are elements that could be the prototype of a farmer-based food safety strategy:
- There is no use of raw manure on vegetable crops without an extended waiting period between manure application and harvest of the crop.
- Compost that contains livestock manures has to meet temperature, mixing and time requirements or else the product must be treated like unprocessed manure.
- There is no routine use of antibiotics within either livestock feed or livestock health programs. (Animals may be treated to ensure health, but neither the animals nor their products may then be sold as organic.)
- There is no use of synthetic pesticides. Their use is not generally considered in food safety protocols like USDA’s Good Agricultural Practices checklist.
- Organic farmers are required to maintain records that allow “one up, one down” traceability. They have to keep records of the sources of inputs, be able to track activities on their farm to the relevant fields/livestock, and then maintain records of sales that are detailed enough to allow full accountability.
Positive elements of the bills before Congress:
Congress has indicated a willingness to work with all parts of the food system to find good solutions. There are elements of HR 759, and other bills, which simply make common sense:
- Recall authority. FDA currently relies on the manufacturer to get food that has been traced to illnesses out of the system. FDA would now have authority to stop sales and require recalls. (Subtitle B, Section 114; Subtitle C, Section 121)
- Expanded research capacity. Which foods are causing problems? Why? FDA lacks some of the basic scientific capacity needed to determine the root of the problems they are responsible for regulating. (Subtitle B, Sections 111-113)
- Enforcement capacity. Implicit in the language of HR 759 (and HR 875) is the idea that the FDA should have sufficient staff and resources to actually enforce existing laws, be able to identify problems quickly, and trace them to their source. This is, to us, the root of the problem, and the solution.
Issues that still need to be clarified within LD 759 and related bills:
1. Who’s covered? HR 759 regulates processors, but doesn’t define the term directly. Some aspects of the bill would extend oversight to activities at farms and restaurants. HR 875’s original language set up classes of processors, with frequency of inspection linked to the class. As Congress considers language, it’s critical that the focus be on the pieces of the food system that have the most potential impact. Suggestions:
A. Establish tiers, similar to HR 875, but focus FDA effort by size:
1. Processors
2. SBA Small Businesses
3. SBA Very Small Businesses
B. Direct sales from farmer to final consumer exempt from FDA oversight, final consumer to include individuals and restaurants.
C. Exempt products that move from farmer to final consumer with identity preserved all the way through the system.
D. Recognize equivalent state systems (e.g., state meat inspection; state oversight of low-risk foods like jams and jellies).
2. Traceability. HR 759 would require most shipments and sales of food to be tracked electronically (Sec. 107, TRACEABILITY) including food purchased by restaurants and farmer sales UNLESS it is a raw agricultural product in a commercial shipment with information that includes the grower, lot, harvesting and packing dates. Suggestions:
A. Existing language in FDA regulations allows either paper or electronic records. Continue that language while:
1. Encouraging development of model recordkeeping system
2. Allowing equivalency (for example, Maine’s blueberry industry uses bar code systems that allow tracking of each pallet back to individual fields)
3. Focusing on one-up, one-down systems—all businesses able to document inputs and products sold from the farm
B. The exemption (above language) should be modified to simply require:
1. The grower
2. Information sufficient to allow tracing back to the field/farm of origin.
C. Expand exemption to include any other products that move directly from the producer to the final buyer, so long as it includes the information included in B, along with other currently-required labeling information.
3. Fees. HR 759 has an elaborate fee system designed to cover all inspection and electronic data costs at FDA. A fee sufficient to cover those costs will discourage new entrants into the business. (The proposed $10,000 fee for all importers will also be a significant barrier for small businesses that import from single or limited sources, such as some coffee importers.)
A. We believe that there should be a separation of functions here. Enforcement of existing government laws is a government function, and shouldn’t be paid for by those being regulated. Inspection and monitoring on a continuous basis to provide access to a market (as in USDA inspection) is a cost of doing business, and should be done on a fee basis.
B. Consideration of the scale of business being regulated is critical.
4. HACCP, or other certifications: See below for a discussion of the many different options for food safety oversight and compliance certification.
A. Language in HR 759 (and other bills) needs to recognize that many different food safety certification systems are already in place. This will be particularly important if the language extends to cover imports—many products from other countries will also be part of similar domestic programs.
B. MOFGA strongly opposes many elements of the Leafy Greens Agreement, embodied in HR 1332.
Food Safety Certification Protocols—a partial listing.
This is a necessarily incomplete listing of food safety protocols that are currently operating at various levels in the U.S., and elsewhere.
- HACCP. Frequently used by processors. Required under FDA protocols for seafood and for juice products. Most meat processing plants, while under USDA jurisdiction, have HACCP plans or equivalent in place.
- Good Agricultural Practices. Increasingly desired by produce buyers. Current USDA GAP standards raise major compliance issues for diversified farms. See MOFGA’s comments at: http://www.mofga.org/Default.aspx?tabid=735. GAP compliance has been required for farmers who supply ingredients to suppliers of the National School Lunch program as a result of a letter from the Director of School Lunch programs at USDA in August, 2007.
- Good Agricultural Practices—Extension version. Rhode Island’s school lunch program encourages suppliers to be compliant with the original Good Agricultural Practices guidelines developed by Extension in the early 1990’s. http://www.uri.edu/ce/ceec/food/grow.html
- GlobalGap (formerly EurepGAP)—generally required by major retailers in the European Union. To assure access to export markets, some US producers (e.g., sweet potato farmers) have received GlobalGap certification. See http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FS145 for an overview.
- Organic certification. Many of the issues of concern in HR 759 and other legislation are specifically addressed by organic certification standards, including: waiting periods for use of manure; compost and input regulations and monitoring; field histories for each unit of production; tracing inputs and outputs. MOFGA has developed an add-on protocol, based on HACCP principles, that could be used by farmers who need additional oversight to meet needs of particular markets.
- Other programs.
A quick Google search showed 170,000 links—this is only a representation of some of the possibilities already on the ground.
Update on Food Safety Legislation: March 30, 2009
Russell Libby, Executive Director, Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association
A lot of you care about access to good, local, organic food!! That message has already reached Congress, as several of us found during meetings with members of Congress and their staffs last Thursday and Friday.
That’s the good news. We still have a long way to go to make sure that any legislation actually improves our food system. So much is dependent on all of us continuing to be clear about what’s broken, and what needs to be fixed.
The Emerging Policy Framework. Various ideas for food safety legislation are being considered by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Some elements likely to be in a committee bill include:
- Clear Lines of Responsibility. Food safety responsibility is scattered between FDA, USDA, and several other agencies. Overall responsibility is likely to move toward FDA, whether in one agency or in a separate Food Safety Administration, except for USDA’s meat and poultry inspection programs.
- Recall Authority. Right now, FDA (and USDA) only can request that processors recall suspect food. This will be changed so FDA and USDA have the right to recall foods that have been traced to illnesses.
- Traceability. If there is a problem, how do you identify the source? There is a continuing push for further tracking of ingredients used by processors.
Issues of Concern. It’s clear that there are gaps in our food safety system. But MOFGA, and other groups that are working on these issues from the perspective of farmers interested in issues of scale, organic production, and sustainability, want to be sure several major problems with the various bills are addressed directly.
Appropriate Solutions. We need to recognize that there are many different ways to produce safe food. The food safety issues associated with a farmer who sells at farmers’ markets are not the same as those of a thousand acre vegetable producer who wholesales all their product. Legislation needs to recognize that. Similarly, the tracking system used for a CSA will be different from a nationwide poultry processor.
Scale and Cost Issues. Whatever proposals are considered need to recognize that large farms -- confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), large wholesale producers -- and large processors have different potential impacts on the food system from small family farms and food businesses. The solutions need to work for farmers, fishermen, and local food processors of all sizes.
Include All Food Safety Issues. So far the discussions, and proposed legislation, focus almost exclusively on potential microbial contamination. There’s no consideration of the potential health impact of pesticides or GMOs. There’s no consideration of the off-farm environmental and health impacts of CAFOs or a corn monoculture. These are food safety and public health issues, too—and they can’t be treated in isolation.
What You Can Do: Many groups are sending out action alerts on various bills. Most have focused on HR 875, but other bills are going to be the major focus of the Energy and Commerce Committee when it works on these bills in the coming weeks. It’s important to keep telling Congress what is working from your perspective—the connection between consumers and farmers, in so many different ways—and where you want them to focus their efforts—on the national and multinational food processors and on the businesses that supply them.
Some Key House Bills, and MOFGA’s concerns:
- HR 759, Rep. John Dingell, FDA Globalization Act of 2009, which thoroughly updates (and expands) FDA’s authority on a wide range of food and drug issues, and mandates electronic trace-back systems. MOFGA concerns: one-size-fits-all trace-back system; fee system to pay for modernization that could create major problems for small processors and others affected by the bill.
- HR 814, Rep. Diana DeGette, TRACE Act, which would require systems to trace all livestock and meat foods at all stages, including livestock, meat, poultry, eggs and egg products. MOFGA concerns: results in mandatory National Animal Identification System; focus on one-size-fits-all trace-back system.
- HR 875, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Food Safety Modernization Act, which would establish a new Food Safety Administration, separate from FDA. Farms would be required to maintain more detailed records and use “good practice standards”. MOFGA concerns: Definitions may be drafted to be overly inclusive. Latest drafts (not yet published) address some of the issues. Rep. DeLauro’s staff has been very responsive in several meetings with farm groups.
- HR 1332, Rep. Jim Costa, Safe FEAST Act of 2009, moves towards a HACCP-based food safety system, and includes any fruits and vegetables deemed to be potential problems by FDA. There are no scale exemptions, and the system is fee-based. MOFGA concerns: Fee levels; mandatory, not optional, HACCP-system; explicit ties between food safety and homeland security planning; extension of FDA authority to fruits and vegetables with no scale considerations (same problem as existing cider/juice regulations)
Besides the Maine delegation, you can send comments to: Committee on Energy and Commerce, 2125 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515
Other action alerts and news articles from the past week:
Organic Consumers Campaign: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17355.cfm
Cornucopia Institute: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17355.cfm
Overview by Leslie Land, http://leslieland.com/blog/food-safety-alert/
Bangor Daily News report on the issue: “Farmers leery of food bills in DC”
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/102645.html
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