How sustainable is the FDA’s approach to food safety?
Legislation
October 29th, 2009
The FDA has proposed a sales ban on Gulf of Mexico raw oysters (to take place in the summer months). This idea reveals the FDA’s piecemeal approach to food safety regulations that more often leaves citizens vulnerable to, rather than protected from, tainted food.
Why focus on a healthy domestic industry whose product poses clear risks? When you eat a raw oyster, it is easy to identify the risk you’re facing–as opposed to eating a hamburger made up of meat from who-knows-how-many sources. It seems that consumers should b able to make their own call on this one.
But it’s because the risks are so identifiable and easy to trace that the FDA has focused on raw Gulf oysters. “Seldom is the evidence on a food-safety problem and solution so unambiguous,” said Michael Taylor, a senior adviser at the Food and Drug Administration.
So they’ve proposed this ban–which may have a huge impact on the livelihoods of Gulf oystermen–because it’s easy. The risks posed by lax inspections on hamburgers, peanut butter, imported shrimp, and even spinach are far more complicated.Should the domestic oyster industry suffer so the FDA can look tough on food safety?
This ban will affect all oyster farmers. The press has already depressed sales and October is an R month as far as I can see. The industry recognizes that the FDA could require all oysters to be Post Harvest Processed. This would kill the small growers.
The illness that the FDA is concerned about is only potentially deadly to people who have compromised immune systems and should not be eating raw foods. This ban will only protect them from infection from a raw oyster, but they could die from some other bacteria.
The industry is proud of our efforts to protect public health. We are one of the few foods that is entirely traceable to its source. We also impart an environmental benefit to the estuaries we work in as 90% of the oysters harvested in the US are farmed.
The Apalachicola Bay oyster industry is sustainable, clean and produces a healthy food product. Folks here have harvested by hand for 100 + years and returned the shells back to the bay to replenish the oysters. Vv is a naturally occurring bacteria found in the Gulf waters. I believe the key is education. Those with health issues should stay away from many raw foods.