Food Safety: A Unified, Risk-Based Food Safety System Needed (Testimony,
05/25/94, GAO/T-RCED-94-223).

The nation's food safety system hampers efforts to address public health
concerns and is slow to respond to changing health risks. To resolve
long-standing problems and guarantee the safety of the food supply, a
single food safety agency administering a uniform set of laws should be
created.  The existing system is characterized by inconsistent and
inflexible oversight and enforcement authorities, inefficient resources
use, and ineffective coordination.  The adoption of a risk-based
approach to inspection could lead to safer products and reduced costs as
scarce resources are targeted to high-risk areas.  Given the problems
associated with establishing a new agency, consolidating food safety
responsibilities under an existing department is a more likely scenario,
although such an option has its own drawbacks.  The Agriculture
Department has conflicting interests that undermine public confidence in
the government's ability to ensure food safety, and the Food and Drug
Administration's food safety program is fraught with serious problems
that must be addressed before it is given additional responsibilities.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  T-RCED-94-223
     TITLE:  Food Safety: A Unified, Risk-Based Food Safety System Needed
      DATE:  05/25/94
   SUBJECT:  Food supply
             Food inspection
             Safety regulation
             Federal agency reorganization
             Agricultural products
             Contaminated foods
             Consumer protection
             Food and drug law
             Law enforcement
             Interagency relations
IDENTIFIER:  FSIS Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point System
             
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