If you had a nickel for every study recommending consolidation of all federal food safety agencies into a single independent entity, you would have a lot of nickels.
Think tanks and academic studies, and legislative auditors and White House staffs have all come to that conclusion. I think of
Continue Reading Letter From The Editor: Food safety’s haphazard structure may have helped during shutdown
Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) have requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) study whether creating a single food agency would increase efficiencies, reduce costs and improve safety. In January, Durbin and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) introduced bills to establish such
Continue Reading Senators Ask GAO to Examine Options for Food Safety Oversight
Top officials of U.S. food safety agencies are not wholeheartedly supportive of a single food safety agency, arguing that collaboration is a higher priority. During the Food Safety Summit in Baltimore on Thursday, leadership from the Food and Drug Administration, Department of Agriculture, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and
Continue Reading Top Food Safety Officials Focused on Collaborating Over Combining Agencies
In 2009, during yet another foodborne illness outbreak, which had killed nine people and sickened more than 700 with Salmonella, our new president stated:
At a bare minimum, we should be able to count on our government keeping our kids safe when they eat peanut butter…. That’s what Sasha eats
Continue Reading Publisher’s Platform: Time for a Single Food Safety Agency?
Some House Republicans appear to be considering proposals for a single food safety agency. In January, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced bills to establish such an agency independent of any federal department. In his budget proposal for fiscal year 2016, President Obama proposed the
Continue Reading Savings From a Single Food Safety Agency Appeal to Some House Republicans
The American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, DC, released a working paper this month recommending a single food safety agency, better market incentives, and more foodborne illness data and surveillance.
In the paper, AEI scholar Sébastien Pouliot acknowledges the difficulty in making major changes to America’s food
Continue Reading AEI Calls for Single Food Safety Agency, Better Foodborne Illness Surveillance
U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis, a conservative Republican from Wyoming, is starting to sound a lot like her colleague Rep. Rose DeLauro, a liberal Democrat from Connecticut — at least when it comes to fixing the nation’s fragmented food safety system.
Citing a Government Accountability Office report on the issue, Rep.
Continue Reading Talk of Food Safety Consolidation Takes Bipartisan Turn
We can go back to talking amongst ourselves about the theory of a single food safety agency in the United States. But in reality, the idea is now dead.
Let’s review.
On Jan. 13, President Obama announced he was asking Congress “to reinstate the authority that past presidents had, over
The Obama Administration “is not ‘confirming’ food safety consolidation,” the subscription news service The Hagstrom Report now says. The newsletter reports:
“Although Jeff Zients, who is now White House Office of Management and Budget director, said recently that consolidation of food safety agencies would be one of those “addressed in
Continue Reading Administration ‘Not Confirming’ Food Safety Consolidation
Ten days ago, we kicked over a hornet’s nest by passing on a solid report suggesting the Obama Administration planned to use its newly sought “consolidation authority” to put all federal food safety functions under one roof.
Most hearing about Obama wanting “consolidation authority” heard about how it would be
