Today, Congressman David Scott, Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy and Poultry, held a hearing to discuss the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) food safety systems.
The Subcommittee heard testimony from USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Administrator Alfred Almanza and from representatives of meat, poultry and egg product producers and processors. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is responsible for ensuring the safety and wholesomeness of domestically produced and imported meat, poultry and egg products.
"Food safety is a major concern for American families, and preventing food borne illnesses must be the primary focus for all of the government's food safety agencies," Subcommittee Chairman Scott said. "With respect to the operations of USDA and FSIS, the system is largely working well, but of course challenges remain, and in Congress, we must ensure that USDA and FSIS have the resources they need to meet those challenges."
“Food safety continues to remain an important but complex issue. I believe that before we can propose changes to the current system, we must have a better understanding of that system. The better our understanding of the current system, the better our ability to weigh proposed changes," said Subcommittee Ranking Member Randy Neugebauer.
Written testimony provided by the witnesses is available on the Committee website: http://democrats-agriculture.house.gov/hearings/index.html. A full transcript of the hearing will be posted on the Committee website at a later date.
Witness List
Panel I
· Mr. Alfred V. Almanza, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C.
Panel II
· Mr. J. Patrick Boyle, President and CEO, American Meat Institute, Washington, D.C.
· Dr. James “Bo" Reagan, Senior Vice President, Research, Education and Innovation, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Washington, D.C.
· Ms. Jill Appell, pork producer, Appell’s Pork Farms, Inc., Past President, National Pork Producers Council, Altona, Illinois
· Dr. Elizabeth A. Krushinskie, Director of Quality Assurance and Food Safety, Mountaire Farms, Inc., on behalf of the National Chicken Council, Millsboro, Delaware
· Dr. Michael Rybolt, Director, Scientific and Regulatory Affairs, National Turkey Federation, Washington, D.C.
· Mr. Elliot P. Gibber, President, Deb-El Foods, on behalf of United Egg Association Further Processors Division, Elizabeth, New Jersey
· Mr. Barry L. Carpenter, Chief Executive Officer, National Meat Association, Oakland, California
http://democrats-agriculture.house.gov
Source: House Committee on Agriculture
