Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 22, 1994 TAG: 9401220124
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
The Food and Drug Administration regulations put responsibility on the processors to ensure the seafood they buy comes from clean waters and is properly cleaned, processed and chilled before it heads for grocery stores and restaurants.
At that point, strengthened retail regulations will ensure that it does not become contaminated in the supermarket, said Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala.
"These safety measures represent preventive health at its best," she said. "This is moving . . . into the 21st century."
It also will provide a model for the Agriculture Department in trying to prevent tainted meat from reaching the public, she said.
Consumers groups, however, said the plan, known as the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point system, or HACCP, does not go far enough.
"FDA has taken a good first step; but, by itself, this program does not adequately protect consumers," said Mark Epstein, executive director of Public Voice. "FDA is going to need increased authority and funding if it is truly going to reduce needless seafood-related illnesses and deaths."
Public Voice said FDA cannot close polluted harvesting waters, require certification of processing plants or inspect fishing boats or fresh seafood markets. And the plan does not address limits on chemical contaminants in seafood.
About 9,000 Americans die every year from food poisoning, but no one knows how many are caused by tainted fish, meat or poultry. FDA Commissioner David Kessler estimated some 30,000 to 60,000 may be sickened by bad seafood each year.
FDA sends inspectors once a year to seafood plants that handle high-risk products, such as raw oysters. Basically, they check for "dirt on the floor," Kessler said.
Under the new plan, FDA inspectors will ensure that seafood plants are enforcing HACCP and will check records that trace the seafood to its origin. Plants that do not fully comply would be subject to fines, even prosecution.
The FDA has been working on the issue since the National Academy of Sciences concluded in 1991 that, although seafood was basically safe, companies had no way to monitor their pasteurization processes or storage temperatures and some did not clean equipment often enough.
Calls for regulations increased in November when the government warned against eating contaminated oysters from two big Louisiana beds. The FDA said more than 100 people suffered stomach ailments after eating oysters from the Grand Pass and Cabbage Reef areas of Louisiana.
The regulations go into effect one year after the end of a 90-day public comment period.
by CNB