[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 29 (Wednesday, February 24, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E280]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  THE IMPORTED FOOD SAFETY ACT OF 1999

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                          HON. JOHN D. DINGELL

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 24, 1999

  Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, almost a year ago a number of my colleagues 
and I introduced legislation aimed at improving the safety of the 
imported food consumed by Americans. The Congress failed to act. 
Regrettably, consumers continue to become sick, and in too many cases 
die, from eating contaminated food. These tragedies are avoidable. We 
have the means to arm FDA with sufficient authority and resources to 
protect our food supply. There are exciting advances in technology that 
may make tests for microbial and pesticide contamination easy to 
perform and affordable.
  The bill we are introducing today is virtually the same as the one we 
introduced last year. To its critics, including many of my colleagues 
in the majority, I say, let us see your proposals. Let's do the 
people's business and improve the safety of our food supply. I 
challenge the majority to at least hold a hearing on the subject of 
food safety. Let's hear from consumers, public health experts, and all 
others with an interest in this matter. I am confident that none will 
dare defend the status quo.
  The General Accounting Office (GAO) has reported that as many as 81 
cases of foodborne illness occur each year. Perhaps as many as 9,100 of 
these cases result in death. Under our current food import program 
there is virtually no preventive testing. Food shows up on the dock. 
Less than one percent of fresh fruit and vegetable are tested. The 
tests take a week or more to yield results. In the meantime the food is 
long gone, by then consumed. Let me repeat that point. The Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA) too often waits for consumers to get sick or 
die before it tries to determine whether the food supply contains 
pathogenic contaminants. The outrageous and wholly intolerable 
conclusion one must draw is that American consumers are being used as 
guinea pigs.
  There are special problems with imports. FDA lack authority and 
resources to ``trace back'' the source of food borne illness beyond the 
border. Furthermore, imported food inspected by FDA fails to meet 
certain government health standards nearly three times more often than 
domestically produced food. Any preventive detection FDA might attempt 
would be futile, because FDA lacks adequate tests to detect pathogens 
on imported food in a timely manner. Finally, FDA cannot even account 
for what happens to imported fruits and vegetables that are 
adulterated.
  The Imported Food Safety Act of 1999 is critically important from a 
public health standpoint. It is also consistent with the international 
trade obligations of the United States. The World Trade Organization's 
Agreement on the Applications of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures 
reaffirmed that health and safety considerations take priority over 
trade. Member countries may, for justifiable health and safety reasons, 
impose more stringent requirements on imported products such as food 
than they require of domestic goods. This legislation is consistent 
with this exception.
  Imports now account for approximately 38 percent of all the fruit and 
12 percent of all the vegetables Americans consume each year. The 
volume of food imported into the U.S. has almost doubled over the last 
5 years, yet the frequency of FDA inspections has declined sharply 
during the same period of time. FDA acknowledges that it is ``in danger 
of being overwhelmed by the volume of products reaching U.S. ports.''
  Even if FDA could perform more inspections, FDA does not have the 
tests it needs to detect E. coli, salmonella, and other pathogens in 
imported fruits and vegetables. As recently as 1997, all of the 
microbiological samples that FDA collected and tested were in response 
to foodborne illness. None were for preventive detection. There has 
been little improvement since then.
  GAO has studied this situation and has concluded that the federal 
government cannot ensure that imported foods are safe. In response to 
this crisis, the President has said FDA needs increased resources, more 
authority, and improved research and technology. The Imported Food 
Safety Act of 1999 addresses each of these points. The legislation 
provides additional resources in the form of a modest user fee on 
imported foods, and a ``Manhattan Project'' to develop ``real time'' 
tests that yield results within 60 minutes to detect E. coli, 
salmonella, and other microbial and pesticide contaminants in food. 
Finally, the legislation gives FDA authority, comparable to that of the 
U.S. Department of Agriculture with respect to imported poultry and 
meat, to stop unsafe food at the border and to assure that its ultimate 
disposition is not America' dinner table.
  I would also note that the FY 2000 budget for the President's food 
safety initiative contains a modest funding increase over previous 
funding levels. Even under the most optimistic funding and allocation 
scenarios, the amount requested is inadequate to meet the resources 
needed to ensure that Americans have healthy food on their dinner 
table.

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