050101 US Meat Group Denies Food Safety Charges

Kansas City, MO - The American Meat Institute, which represents the larger U.S. meat and poultry producers, denied allegations by the Consumer Federation of America that the Bush administration has catered to industry desires for easier food safety standards at the expense of consumer safety.

The AMI held a press conference at its offices in Washington, and issued a statement expressing their position on the report.

"'Not Ready to Eat' might be better titled 'Not Ready for Print' because it appears that the report's authors are so close-minded that they choose to ignore government data showing that meat and poultry products are getting safer every day," said AMI president J. Patrick Boyle in the AMI statement.

The CFA report, meanwhile, said, "While consumer and public-health advocates were sometimes critical of the deliberate pace of the Clinton administration's initial response to Listeria, that administration's proposals were aimed at holding companies responsible for producing safe products and at requiring them to demonstrate that their products met applicable standards."

"By contrast, in its first four years in office, the Bush Administration has shifted focus from protecting public health to preserving industry's autonomy," the CFA said. "USDA released a proposed regulation on Listeria in February 2001 that promised real progress toward significantly reducing contamination in ready-to-eat meat and poultry products."

Since that time, however, the Department has disregarded a joint risk assessment undertaken with U.S. Food and Drug Administration and responded inadequately to a major Listeria outbreak in 2002, which prompted the largest ever recall of potentially tainted meat and poultry products, the CFA said. CFA also criticized the FSIS for its faulty monitoring of food-safety plans at implicated plants and its inadequate oversight of product recalls.

The administration also delayed completion of a final Listeria rule until 2 1/ 2 years after it had published the proposed rule and five years after the major Bil-Mar Listeria outbreak was linked to ready-to-eat meat and poultry products, the CFA charged.

Also, Merle Pierson, acting USDA under secretary for food safety, issued a statement on the subject.

"The interim final rule on the control of Listeria monocytogenes in ready- to- eat meat and poultry products, like all USDA FSIS regulations, is based on sound science and has as its number one goal the protection of public health," Pierson's statement said.

"The interim final rule, published in June 2003, is far stronger and requires significantly more from industry than the proposed rule published on Feb. 27, 2001. The requirements of the interim final rule have spurred the industry to greatly increase testing and incorporate new technologies to control or eliminate Listeria."

Pierson called the results "remarkable." The number of listeria recalls fell to 14 in 2003 from 40 in 2002, his statement said.

Pierson also quoted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as saying no outbreaks of listeria related to meat and poultry were documented in 2003.

"The 2001 proposed rule, which was based on the limited information available at the time, followed the two largest recalls in FSIS history - both for listeria - 35 million pounds in 1998 and 33 million pounds in 1999. The proposed rule treated all plants the same, despite the fact that not all products carry the same level of risk," Pierson said.

The proposed rule also didn't require that plants treat listeria as a likely hazard and address preventative measures in their food safety plans, nor did it mandate that plants share their testing data results with the FSIS.

"The interim final rule has made RTE products safer and improved health protection for American consumers," Pierson's statement said. "FSIS will continue to review public comments and the rule's implementation to make it even stronger."

Boyle defended the president, saying "the progress made in enhancing ready- to- eat meat and poultry safety under the Bush administration is indisputable."

According to CDC, individual cases of listeria were detected at a rate of 0.33 cases per 100,000 people in 2003, compared with 0.27 per 100,000 in 2002, Boyle and the CPA said.

Boyle said the CDC didn't characterize it as an increase; rather, CDC said in its announcement, "Listeria did not continue to decline in 2003...."

However, the CPA said it was a 22% rise.

The battle against Listeria isn't over, Boyle said. But progress is clear. And in contrast to the report's premise, producing safe food, avoiding recalls, protecting both customers and brand equity is good for business and is this industry's unqualified top priority.

RETURN TO HOME PAGE

E-mail: sflanagan@sprintmail.com