<b>By TIM ALEXANDER<br>
Illinois Correspondent</b> </p><p>

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Legislators are rallying Congress and President Bush to take immediate, sweeping action to ensure the safety of the U.S. food supply.</p><p>
Leading the charge were U.S. senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who last week introduced separate measures designed to boost funding for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and address problems associated with smuggled food and agriculture products.</p><p>
Durbin, along with Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and representatives of food industry and consumer groups, had a press conference last week at the U.S. Capitol Building during which they unveiled a letter sent to President Bush urging a significant funding increase for FDA food safety resources and its food program.</p><p>
“For years, Congress has pointed out that the FDA is understaffed and underfunded,” Durbin said. “I am calling on the administration to commit to doubling FDA funding over the next five years. We simply cannot leave American families vulnerable when it comes to food safety.”</p><p>
The senators’ action comes on the heels of a report from the FDA’s science board detailing how FDA budget woes are jeopardizing the safety of the nation’s food supply. The report stated current resources are inadequate to meet rising demands for services, and the FDA is “woefully underfunded,” according to Durbin’s office.</p><p>
“We need comprehensive preventive measures, effective surveillance and robust authority for FDA to take action where needed to protect lives,” Kennedy said. “I am working with my colleagues on the health committee and throughout the Senate on comprehensive bipartisan legislation to protect the food supply. This proposal ought to be the first order of business for the Senate in the new year.”</p><p>
The proposed increase in FDA funding would assist in developing new strategies as well as in monitoring, enforcement and inspections, among other ways, said Leslie G. Sarasin, president and CEO of the American Frozen Food Institute. “These efforts are intended to enable the agency to remain an effective force in resolving issues bearing on the safety, quality and labeling of foods and other products,” Sarasin added.</p><p>
The senators’ letter to Bush urged higher funding for the FDA’s Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition and related activities at the Office of Regulatory Affairs.</p><p>
“We believe additional funding for the agency is an important step toward improving our ability to protect human health and welfare from dangerous imported food products,” the letter read in part.
In addition, Grassley and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) introduced what they call “the first major bipartisan food safety bill” on Dec. 5. The Ending Agricultural Threats: Safeguarding America’s Food for Everyone (EAT SAFE) Act of 2007 would address the problems of smuggled food and agricultural products that pose serious risks to U.S. plants, animals and food, according to Casey’s office.</p><p>
“In the wake of massive recalls of contaminated pet food and consumer warnings about the safety of various imported food products, ensuring the safety of food products and food ingredients has taken on a greater urgency,” said Casey. “The EAT SAFE Act addresses these serious risks by applying common-sense measures to protect our food and agricultural supply.”</p><p>
Grassley added that though Americans enjoy the safest and most abundant food supply in the world, consumer confidence is beginning to wane in light of numerous recent food recalls.
“(The Act) would help give assurance to consumers that the imported product they picked up at the grocery store is safe,” he said.</p><p>
EAT SAFE, as introduced, would authorize $25 million for the FDA and USDA to hire additional personnel to detect and track smuggled food and agriculture products and provide food defense monitoring, $1.7 million for training for DHS agricultural specialists and $4.8 million for “agriculture cross-training” for DHS border patrol agents.</p><p>
In addition, the legislation would impose stringent conditions on private laboratories conducting tests on FDA-regulated products and provide for civil penalties for laboratories and importers found to have falsified lab results. The bill also allows for penalties for importers who attempt to circumvent the USDA’s import re-inspection system.</p><p>
EAT SAFE also directs governmental agencies to develop a Memorandum of Understanding to ensure the sharing of all collected data related to food-borne pathogens, contaminations and illnesses.