Cochran, De Lauro seek better imported seafood inspections
Following the release of a report critical of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s inspection of imported seafood, including catfish varieties, Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., and Rep. Rosa De Lauro, D-Conn., have called on the government to do a better job.
Cochran said the Government Accountability Office report showed that catfish inspection needs to be moved to the Agriculture Department, as required by a provision in the 2008 farm bill. Implementation of that provision has been held up as Vietnam and other foreign suppliers of catfish and similar varieties claim that the shift protects American catfish producers against competition.
Cochran noted that the Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service will hold public meetings in Washington on May 24 and at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center on May 26 to discuss the issue.
“The GAO has confirmed what many of us have maintained for some time: that the existing federal program to inspect imported seafood is so limited that it is insufficient and ineffective,” Cochran said in a news release. “The need for better oversight of imported seafood is among the reasons why Congress wants the U.S. Department of Agriculture to decisively move forward with new federal safety standards for foreign catfish imports.”
DeLauro, ranking member on the Labor, Education, Health, and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee and former chairman of the Agriculture-FDA Appropriations Subcommittee, noted that the report focuses on the lack of inspection for unapproved drugs in imported seafood, such as antibiotics used to treat bacterial infections.
DeLauro said in a news release that the report showed the need for more funding for food safety inspection and for the Obama administration to be careful as it moves ahead on free trade agreements. DeLauro did not address the question of whether catfish inspection should move from FDA to USDA.
“Currently 84 percent of the seafood consumed in the United States is imported, yet only one in every 10 imported fish, shellfish, shrimp, or other seafood is tested for drug residues when it enters our country,” DeLauro said.
“The GAO findings further highlight the need to modernize the FDA’s approach to ensuring the safety of imported seafood in order to keep up with the ever-increasing quantities of seafood we import from more than 100 countries. Currently, our testing processes do not adequately test imported seafood for potential chemicals not approved for use in the United States. The Food Safety Modernization Act included several provisions to help meet that need, but we must do more. American consumers deserve better.”
DeLauro added, “As the administration continues to move forward with Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), we cannot allow trade to trump food safety. In particular, food safety must be a top priority in the ongoing negotiations over a Trans-Pacific Partnership FTA that involves Vietnam, a country we import a large amount of seafood from.”
Cochran said the Government Accountability Office report showed that catfish inspection needs to be moved to the Agriculture Department, as required by a provision in the 2008 farm bill. Implementation of that provision has been held up as Vietnam and other foreign suppliers of catfish and similar varieties claim that the shift protects American catfish producers against competition.
Cochran noted that the Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service will hold public meetings in Washington on May 24 and at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center on May 26 to discuss the issue.
“The GAO has confirmed what many of us have maintained for some time: that the existing federal program to inspect imported seafood is so limited that it is insufficient and ineffective,” Cochran said in a news release. “The need for better oversight of imported seafood is among the reasons why Congress wants the U.S. Department of Agriculture to decisively move forward with new federal safety standards for foreign catfish imports.”
DeLauro, ranking member on the Labor, Education, Health, and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee and former chairman of the Agriculture-FDA Appropriations Subcommittee, noted that the report focuses on the lack of inspection for unapproved drugs in imported seafood, such as antibiotics used to treat bacterial infections.
DeLauro said in a news release that the report showed the need for more funding for food safety inspection and for the Obama administration to be careful as it moves ahead on free trade agreements. DeLauro did not address the question of whether catfish inspection should move from FDA to USDA.
“Currently 84 percent of the seafood consumed in the United States is imported, yet only one in every 10 imported fish, shellfish, shrimp, or other seafood is tested for drug residues when it enters our country,” DeLauro said.
“The GAO findings further highlight the need to modernize the FDA’s approach to ensuring the safety of imported seafood in order to keep up with the ever-increasing quantities of seafood we import from more than 100 countries. Currently, our testing processes do not adequately test imported seafood for potential chemicals not approved for use in the United States. The Food Safety Modernization Act included several provisions to help meet that need, but we must do more. American consumers deserve better.”
DeLauro added, “As the administration continues to move forward with Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), we cannot allow trade to trump food safety. In particular, food safety must be a top priority in the ongoing negotiations over a Trans-Pacific Partnership FTA that involves Vietnam, a country we import a large amount of seafood from.”
- GAO Seafood Safety: FDA Needs to Improve Oversight of Imported Seafood and Better Leverage Limited Resources
- GAO Seafood Safety Summary
- FSIS Proposed Rule — Mandatory Inspection of Catfish and Catfish Products
- FSIS Office of Catfish Inspection
