Consumers Union issued a statement yesterday saying that “while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new report on its current food safety activities shows some progress, it is not enough to adequately protect the American food supply.
‘While it is positive that they are establishing five offices in foreign countries, the discovery last week that melamine is contaminating infant formula in the U.S. as well as in China indicates that much more action is needed. FDA should immediate ask companies to recall the contaminated batches of formula.
‘The FDA needs a complete overhaul, including but not limited to vastly increased funding, far greater staff and much more frequent inspections of both domestic and foreign food processors.”
Furthermore, Consumers Union said, “FDA must also become more proactive and precautionary, rather than reactive. The recent findings of melamine and cyanuric acid in infant formula – revealed to the public not by FDA but by a Freedom of Information Act request by reporters – demonstrates the agency’s failure to exercise adequate precaution. If these two chemicals are combined—a possibility FDA is not so far considering— they can be extremely hazardous to infants. Despite this hazard, and despite the fact that the agency has known about the melamine in milk products from China since September, FDA has not yet requested any recalls of contaminated batches of the formula. Consumers Union calls on FDA to request a company recall of any formula with melamine or cyanuric acid.”
‘While it is positive that they are establishing five offices in foreign countries, the discovery last week that melamine is contaminating infant formula in the U.S. as well as in China indicates that much more action is needed. FDA should immediate ask companies to recall the contaminated batches of formula.
‘The FDA needs a complete overhaul, including but not limited to vastly increased funding, far greater staff and much more frequent inspections of both domestic and foreign food processors.”
Furthermore, Consumers Union said, “FDA must also become more proactive and precautionary, rather than reactive. The recent findings of melamine and cyanuric acid in infant formula – revealed to the public not by FDA but by a Freedom of Information Act request by reporters – demonstrates the agency’s failure to exercise adequate precaution. If these two chemicals are combined—a possibility FDA is not so far considering— they can be extremely hazardous to infants. Despite this hazard, and despite the fact that the agency has known about the melamine in milk products from China since September, FDA has not yet requested any recalls of contaminated batches of the formula. Consumers Union calls on FDA to request a company recall of any formula with melamine or cyanuric acid.”
- KC's View:
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We repeat a sentiment made ad nauseum here on MNB … FDA continues to drop the ball, then deny that it has dropped the ball, then question what dropping the ball really means.
If these are our tax dollars at work, I’d like to ask for an audit.
