Food-Borne Illness Outbreaks Amid Government Shutdown

[hvactec]

You may have heard that, as a result of a childish spat between the Republicans and Democrats in Congress, the public at large is being held hostage. What you may not have heard is that it DOES affect you – especially where food safety is concerned.

As a country, America imports a lot of food – especially meat – from foreign nations like China. And China isn’t exactly known for it’s top of the line food safety standards. By not having enough resources to properly inspect the food coming in from places like China, our government is putting the public at risk for even more food-borne illnesses. This is a HUGE concern, especially when the CDC estimates that 325,000 Americans are hospitalized every year from food poisoning, resulting in thousands of deaths!

The gross lack of leadership we’re witnessing in Washington has forced the USDA office of communications to shut down, potentially preventing the agency from disseminating important food safety information. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will have a vastly reduced capacity to track outbreaks of disease.

This is a terrifying reality we’re living in, and already the public is suffering from the governments’ shutdown of the agencies who typically work tirelessly to keep unsafe food from our dinner plates.

read more
Food-Borne Illness Outbreaks Amid Government Shutdown | Economy In Crisis

 

[Ringel05]

I'm sure it works for her.......

Oh and with the poultry salmonella outbreak coming out of California the government is doing nothing......
U.S. Issues Warning on Salmonella Believed to Be Linked to a Poultry Farm

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/09/business/us-issues-warning-on-salmonella-believed-to-be-linked-to-a-poultry-farm.html?_r=0

 

[SteadyMercury]

This is just fear-mongering for the sake of, well, fear-mongering.

Look at what your article says:

The gross lack of leadership we’re witnessing in Washington has forced the USDA office of communications to shut down, potentially preventing the agency from disseminating important food safety information.

The office of communication? Really? We are to be concerned about potentially preventing them from disseminating important food information, as we just finish reading their warnings about salmonella from Foster Farms chicken bearing the codes P6137, P6137A and P7632? Clearly important food information is being relayed.

From the USDA website on their operations during the shutdown http://www.usda.gov/documents/usda-fsis-shutdown-plan.pdf

Field inspection of meat, poultry and egg products: The following direct field staff functions will be performed to ensure the safety of human life for the duration of a government shutdown:

1. Inspecting before and after slaughter those birds and animals intended for use as food for humans and supervising the further processing of meat and poultry products.

2. Ensuring that meat, poultry, and egg products are safe and preventing the movement or
sale in commerce of any meat or poultry products which are adulterated.

3. Applying foreign governments’ inspection requirements and procedures to verify that
products exported from the United States are safe.

4. Conducting emergency operations in connection with the voluntary recall of meat or
poultry products contaminated with drug or chemical residues, other adulterants, or
microbial contamination.

5. Conducting epidemiological investigations based on reports of food-borne health hazards
and disease outbreaks.

6. Monitoring allied industries to prevent uninspected or adulterated meat, poultry and egg
products from illegally entering channels of commerce.

7. Providing pathological, microbiological, chemical, and other scientific examination of
meat, poultry and egg products for disease, infection, contamination, or other types of
adulteration.

8. Conducting a microbiological monitoring and surveillance program.

Sure there is a food-borne illness outbreak right now. We also have them when there is no shutdown. We also have the FDA stating their food inspections an monitoring continue during the shutdown.

 

[Rozman]

As long as I can remember there have been announcements of some sort of food issues be it
e coli or salmonella.To say this is exclusive to the partial shutdown of government is without merit.
But the left will use it for political purposes.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

You may have heard that, as a result of a childish spat between the Republicans and Democrats in Congress, the public at large is being held hostage. What you may not have heard is that it DOES affect you – especially where food safety is concerned.

As a country, America imports a lot of food – especially meat – from foreign nations like China. And China isn’t exactly known for it’s top of the line food safety standards. By not having enough resources to properly inspect the food coming in from places like China, our government is putting the public at risk for even more food-borne illnesses. This is a HUGE concern, especially when the CDC estimates that 325,000 Americans are hospitalized every year from food poisoning, resulting in thousands of deaths!

The gross lack of leadership we’re witnessing in Washington has forced the USDA office of communications to shut down, potentially preventing the agency from disseminating important food safety information. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will have a vastly reduced capacity to track outbreaks of disease.

This is a terrifying reality we’re living in, and already the public is suffering from the governments’ shutdown of the agencies who typically work tirelessly to keep unsafe food from our dinner plates.

read more
Food-Borne Illness Outbreaks Amid Government Shutdown | Economy In Crisis

Are you telling me this wouldn't have happened if the inspectors were on the job? You do understand that the inspectors were actually working when this happened, and that they are still working, don't you? In fact, the USDA threatened to pull the inspectors, which would have closed the plant, if Foster Farms didn't come up with a plan to deal with the problem. Blaming the fake shutdown for this makes as much sense as blaming Obama for the Iraq war.

 

[Stephanie]

here comes the OMG we are all going to DIE fearmongering..

we had many of these when these idiots were up and running, they come RIDING in after the outbreak to SAVE YOU ALL..... that's how pathetic this government is at their JOBS

yet we are suppose to believe now they can CHANGE THE CLIMATE or we are all GOING TO DIE

 

[Politico]

So....people are scum and will try to get away with anything unless someone is looking over their shoulders. This is news how?

 

[Katzndogz]

If the government shut down is the reason why there are food borne illnesses, then we should make the shut down permanent. There are ALWAYS scares, recalls, and mass illnesses so the government's oversight has been useless. All these years of food borne illnesses, either the government wasn't doing their job at all, or they were doing a piss poor job. One more agency that we now know can be eliminated.

 

[Katzndogz]

Food is one of those products that, like guns, cannot be made safe. By far and away the majority of food borne illnesses are caused by mishandling at the consumer end. There is no government fix for that, unless it would be a law prohibiting anyone from making their own meals and have government cooks in every home.

The salmonella outbreak is not coming from imported chickens from China but from a Foster Farms processing plant in California. There SHOULD be bathroom inspectors in these processing plants to make sure the mexicans on the line wash their hands when they take a shit and before they go back to work. Putting up signs doesn't work. We don't have toilet monitors. Maybe we should.

The FDA does not test anything for salmonella. It does for e-coli but there are no food inspectors that test for salmonella because salmonella is naturally occurring in the environment and cannot be eliminated. That's why there has been NO RECALL of the chickens that may have been contaminated. The CDC has no interest in salmonella because it is not a communicable disease.

Knowing that the government has no obligation to keep you safe from salmonella or even most cases of e-coli, even democrats will have to take SOME responsibility for themselves and start washing their hands, keeping food stored at a proper temperature and COOKING IT. Cooking destroys both salmonella and e-coli.

Democrats evidently don't even want to wipe their own asses! You all need a keeper.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

The brain-dead rw's conveniently forget that this is exactly what their owners want. As it is, our safety regulations don't keep us safe and if Rs had the power, there would be even fewer safeguards.

 

[Stephanie]

The brain-dead rw's conveniently forget that this is exactly what their owners want. As it is, our safety regulations don't keep us safe and if Rs had the power, there would be even fewer safeguards.

Whoa, you need more tin foil for that post

I think you and that party you are in wrote the book on FEAR MONGERING

 

[laughinReaper]

Oh for heaven sakes people, wash your food and cook it throughly. Becareful not to cross contaminate by immediately cleaning anything that touched the raw meat. I'm sure there's salmonella and other food borne illnesses in the food supply all the time. You should treat every piece of meat like it has harmful bacteria in it because it probably does.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

Oh for heaven sakes people, wash your food and cook it throughly. Becareful not to cross contaminate by immediately cleaning anything that touched the raw meat. I'm sure there's salmonella and other food borne illnesses in the food supply all the time. You should treat every piece of meat like it has harmful bacteria in it because it probably does.

Common sense only works if we accept that the government is not able to protect us from our own mistakes.

 

[Samson]

Oh for heaven sakes people, wash your food and cook it throughly. Becareful not to cross contaminate by immediately cleaning anything that touched the raw meat. I'm sure there's salmonella and other food borne illnesses in the food supply all the time. You should treat every piece of meat like it has harmful bacteria in it because it probably does.

Common sense only works if we accept that the government is not able to protect us from our own mistakes.

What if it's a mistake to accept that?

 

[Rozman]

I believe Salmonella will not be an issue if the food is handled and cooked properly.
E coli is a different matter cause it may show up in lettuce for example which is not cooked...

Anything this administration can use to further their agenda they will use to their advantage.

 

[tinydancer]

Oh give me a break. E coli and salmonella outbreaks never occured before the shutdown?

Kiss my ass.

 

[tinydancer]

The FDA website on recalls is still up and running. If you sign up you will get email on the recalls. I've been a fan ever since the pet food nightmare of 2007

Here's the top 3. Many more at the website.

10/10/2013 Safeway Snack Artist BBQ Potato Chips Undeclared milk Barrel O’ Fun Snack Foods Co.

10/08/2013 PRAN Powder turmeric Elevated levels of lead Asia Cash & Carry Inc.

10/07/2013 Turkey Hill Ice Cream Metal shavings Turkey Hill Dairy

Recalls, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts