Even with $65 billion of US food coming in from imported sources, we still want to have the same confidence in foreign food choices as we have with our domestic products. We need to know that no matter what we buy from the grocery store, standards and regulations are in place to ensure that our selections are safe and healthy.
The USDA Regulates Imported Food
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) consists of multiple departments, many of which seem to have a say in imported food. The Federal Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has the responsibility of ensuring the safety of our imported meat, poultry and eggs. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) monitors the importation of fruits and vegetables with their Fruits and Vegetables Import Requirements (FAVIR) system.
It appears as though the USDA is responsible for the importation of food as they set the policies on foreign regulations. Imported goods do not need to be identical to domestic goods, but must have equivalent levels in sanitation and health protection.
The FDA Regulates Imported Food
Yet, in 2001, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its insufficient seafood inspection program. Apparently, the FDA wasn’t protecting consumers against banned substances found in seafood products such as antibiotics.
In 2008, the USDA published a report to examine the violations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on imported food. The areas of highest concern were vegetables, fishery and seafood, and fruits. The issues surrounded sanitation, pesticide residue and unregistered processes in canned food products.
The Department of Homeland Security Regulates Imported Food
Finally, in December 2009 in a response to President Obama’s Food Safety Working Group, the need for close cooperation of federal agencies was addressed. Not the USDA nor the FDA, but the Department of Homeland Security has created a center to focus on the safety of U.S. imported foods and on the protection of the U.S. consumer. The aim of the center is to enhance the inspection process to ensure that foods coming from abroad meet the same standards of health and safety as those produced at home.
The FSIS of the USDA and the FDA, along with other related government agencies like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission, will all be a part of the new center. Hopefully, as these multiple agencies come together and share their expertise, standards and regulations on imported food will finally tighten so that safety of the U.S. consumer can be met.
