    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
    [July 6, 1996]
    [Pages 1079-1080]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    July 6, 1996

        Good morning. This holiday weekend we celebrate America's birthday
    and the values that hold us together as a community and a country. It's
    a time for family and fun, for games and fireworks and backyard
    barbecues. Tonight smoke will curl over homes on nearly every block as
    millions of families gather around the grill for the most American of
    meals, hamburgers and hotdogs and barbecued chicken.
        Today I want to talk to you about the steps we're taking to make
    sure the food we cook in backyard barbecues is safe and wholesome. Our
    families have every right to expect the food they serve their children
    is safe. They have every right to expect the world's most bountiful food
    supply will also be the world's safest. And in fact, our food is very
    safe.
        Nearly a century ago, after muckrakers exposed dirty conditions in
    meat-packing plants, we made a national commitment to protect the public
    from unsafe food. It was one of the first ways we came together to meet
    the challenges of that new industrial age. Last year, we put in place
    new safety precautions for seafood. And

    [[Page 1080]]

    in recent years, we've learned that we all must continue to be vigilant
    on meat and poultry safety, and we learned it the hard way. For every
    year, scores of Americans still die and tens of thousands become sick
    from eating meat or poultry that is contaminated with harmful bacteria.
        We all remember how in 1993 tragedy struck hundreds of families in
    the western United States. Undercooked hamburgers served in a fast food
    restaurant were contaminated with a deadly strain of E. coli bacteria.
    Five hundred people became ill, and four children died.
        The parents of many of the E. coli victims turned their grief into a
    determination to help others. Some of them are here with me today. In
    the face of this unspeakable tragedy, they had one insistent question:
    How could this have happened? I asked that question too, and I asked my
    administration, what can we do to prevent it from happening again?
        Now, sometimes food makes us sick because it's undercooked. But
    sometimes families have been exposed to illnesses because some meat and
    poultry shipped to our supermarket shelves contained invisible and
    deadly bacteria. The reason was shocking and simple: For all our
    technological advances, the way we inspect meat and poultry had not
    changed in 90 years. Even though we know that killers such as salmonella
    can only be seen with a microscope, inspectors were still checking on
    meat and poultry by look, touch, smell. We relied on an overworked cadre
    of Government inspectors, rather than working with the industry and
    challenging it to keep food safe.
        Under the direction of Vice President Gore and Secretary Glickman,
    the United States Department of Agriculture has worked with industry,
    scientists, farmers, parents, and consumers to completely revamp our
    meat and poultry inspection system, to revolutionize the way our Nation
    protects food safety. This morning I want to announce the major changes
    that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will take to keep food safe and
    to protect our children from deadly bacteria.
        First, we're challenging every meat-packing plant in America to do
    scientific tests or take other safety precautions at every step of
    production. Each company must design and put in place its own tough
    plan. We're not imposing a detailed list of do's and don'ts. We're
    working with industry as partners, challenging them to find ways to make
    our meat the safest it can be. Each plant will be held accountable for
    meeting high standards at every step of the process.
        Second, we're insisting that every slaughterhouse begin to conduct
    rigorous scientific tests to make sure the meat is not contaminated with
    deadly strains of E. coli and salmonella bacteria.
        Third, companies will have to improve their sanitation procedures.
    All too often, food is contaminated because simple sanitary rules are
    not followed.
        All these changes will be phased in over the coming months to make
    sure they are done right. These new meat and poultry contamination
    safeguards will be the strongest ever. They are flexible, and they do
    challenge the private sector to take responsibility. They also use the
    most up-to-date science to track down invisible threats. They protect
    the public without tangling business in redtape.
        Parents should know that when they serve a chicken dinner they're
    not putting their children at risk. Parents should know that when a
    teenager borrows the car to get a fast food hamburger, the hamburger
    should be the least of their worries. Our new food safety initiative
    will give families the security to know that the food they eat is as
    safe as it can be.
        To be sure, parents will also still have to take responsibility.
    There is no way to make food entirely free from risk; nature simply
    won't let us. So everyone should follow warning labels, be careful how
    you handle raw meat and poultry, and make sure it's well cooked before
    you serve it to your family.
        These days families have enough to worry about. They shouldn't have
    to fear the food they eat is unsafe. With the tough steps we're taking
    today, America's parents should be able to breathe a little easier.
        Have a safe and happy Fourth of July weekend.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from the Oval Office at the
    White House.