WASHINGTON - Amidst rising concern over the safety of foreign goods and a growing string of recalled products, the House Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittees on Trade and Oversight held a joint hearing today examining how the U.S. can better ensure the safety of its imports.
Witnesses testifying before the Committee outlined the dangers posed by the current lack of coordination between governmental agencies tasked with guaranteeing the safety of imported products.
Toxic Chemicals:
In particular, Mr. Mark Berman, Chairman and CEO of Rockland Industries warned the Committee of the threat posed by high levels of the toxic chemical formaldehyde in imported fabrics: "We believe that the levels of formaldehyde that are in fact found in imported blackout fabrics of 1,000 to almost 3,000 parts per million (ppm) would bring them within the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA) definitions of "toxic" and irritant…" [W]e believe the health risks in light of continuing medical research since the regulation was adopted and accepted international norms indicate that that Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) should revisit the 10,000 ppm threshold… and reduce it to no more than 1,000 ppm." Mr. Berman also stressed the need for improved enforcement mechanisms, stating: "We believe the existing regulatory framework is inadequate to protect Americans from the health risks associated with formaldehyde. In spite of awareness within the regulatory community, the practical ability to enforce is the problem."
Food Safety:
The panel also heard warnings on food safety from Mrs. Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives for the Consumers Union, who pointed out the limitations of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to adequately inspect and assure the safety of all imports. In her testimony, she cautioned that the FDA "inspects less than one percent of food imports entering the country. There are over 300 ports (many landlocked) where food can enter. At the peak of its funding, there were FDA inspectors stationed at only 90 of them, and the number of inspectors has dropped since then. This has led to a phenomenon known as "port shopping." Indeed, if a shipment of seafood is rejected by FDA inspectors at one port because it has begun to decompose, there is nothing at all to prevent the importer from trying another port where FDA simply may not be present."
Mr. John Williams, Executive Director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance provided testimony contrasting the American inspection regimes with international competitors, stating: "An examination of the food safety regimes of major food importing countries including the European Union, Japan and Canada make clear that stringent import systems can be effective in protecting food supplies while facilitating trade in safe products. In stark contrast, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relies solely on point-of-entry inspection of one percent of imported seafood products as the first and last line of defense…" In short, the imported food safety program administered by the FDA is broken, lax, ineffective and dangerous."
Safety of Chinese steel imports:
One witness, Mr. Chris Knox, Vice President of Sales and Marketing of Vest, Inc. spoke about concerns regarding the safety of steel tubing imports from China. He stated that, while China is the top foreign supplier of structural tubing to the U.S., there are serious questions about the safety tests performed on Chinese steel tubing prior to its arrival in American ports. Specifically, Mr. Knox warned that, "With regard to imported materials, this responsibility is placed with the foreign producer. It is important to note that manufacturers must provide detailed mill certifications to our service center customers who in turn provide them to their building contract customers to ensure that engineering requirements are met. In fact, it appears to us that some Chinese producers are providing fictitious mill certificates." Because steel tubing is widely used in domestic and commercial construction, deficient Chinese tubing poses direct and tremendous risk to American workers and families.
