So the two major political parties CAN work together... and a safer food supply could be the result! I'm not going to get into politics here, but I do find it fascinating that the two major political parties that can't seem to work out many of the country's pressing issues, have managed to come together long enough to write a bi-partisan bill, the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act , which has been introduced in the Senate and is waiting for the committee to work on it. The bill would help refocus the Food and Drug Administration on prevention of (rather than reaction to) food-borne disease outbreaks... hello E. coli on raw spinach ... and salmonella -laced jalapeño peppers . What would this bill do?

• It would require domestic and foreign food companies to assess potential hazards, develop food safety plans, and take steps to prevent contaminated foods from being marketed.
• It would require the FDA to issue regulations for ensuring safer fresh produce.

What the bill ought to do? According to the experts at The Center For Science In The Public Interest (CSPI) who reviewed the bill, there are several things the bill ought to be doing:

• The bill could be strengthened by modernizing the FDA's outdated 1938 enforcement tools with stronger civil penalties, better traceability and oversight, and broader recall authority.
• The bill needs to provide for new resources to implement these programs and hire more inspectors at the FDA.

Point well taken CSPI! Hopefully some of these enhancements will take shape as the bill moves along in the Senate. Related Topics:

• WebMD Video: Protecting Your Family From E. coli
• Food Poisoning and Safe Food Handling

Technorati Tags: food safety , FDA , E. coli , salmonella , healthy diet