Industry opposition to language regarding food security has delayed bioterrorism legislation in the U.S. House and Senate, Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA reported this week (see GSN, April 4).

House- and Senate-passed bills last year would require food makers to register with the government and would allow the Food and Drug Administration to detain tainted food.  The bills also would force food importers to notify FDA inspectors before bringing products into the United States (see GSN, Feb. 27).  Conferees have not been able to reach agreement on a final bill so far, the newsletter said.

The U.S. food industry believes no new regulations are needed, an industry trade group representative said (see GSN, Dec. 6, 2001).

“We have never really felt these food provisions were that necessary,” Kelly Johnson of the National Food Processors Association said.  “There really are vast legal authorities on the books.”

The FDA should have to go through formal rule-making, which would allow food industry input, trade groups say.

Consumer groups have said the new food safety regulations do not go far enough, the newsletter reported.  Neither bill would force food makers to recall tainted products, currently done on a voluntary basis.

“These provisions are important but they’re not enough to really give the agency the teeth it needs in the event of a bioterrorist attack,” said Caroline Smith DeWaal of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA, May 12).

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