How Political Is Food Safety?

A recent article stated that 98% of Americans do not trust the federal government to enforce laws that protect Americans from dangerous foods. With Decision 2008 around the corner, a question arises: “How will food safety regulation affect Americans political decisions?”

With over 76,000,000 food-borne illnesses reported last year alone, the American public is slowly losing faith in government agencies that regulate both imported and domestic food. And rightfully so. While new standards have been put in place in states such as California, there is no one to actually enforce or inspect our nation’s produce.

Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat from Connecticut, stated yesterday that this issue is “something for us to be very, very concerned about.” The American public needs to put pressure on their representatives to fight the issue full speed in 2008. If we do not demand proper food safety inspections and hold government agencies responsible for enforcement of new standards, we are guilty of indifference.

“Food safety has always been important and the recent headlines only support what has been the case for years,” states Joy Sisson of www.learn2serve.com. “Hopefully, the American public will realize how powerful their voices can be in creating new standards and safeguarding the food they eat everyday.”

How Safe Are Your Leafy Greens?

Despite last year’s deadly E coli outbreak, government regulators cannot say with certainty that the leafy greens finding themselves onto your dinner table are safe. Regulations governing California farms are still in the same state they were spinach with bacteria from a cattle ranch killed three people and infected over 200 more.

The Associated Press found that federal inspections of produce farms occurred once every 3.9 years. California, which produces three quarters of the nation’s leafy greens, has new inspections in place; however, the voluntary guidelines have not protected consumers from recent cases of salmonella.

Despite all the controversy and proposals that have found their way to Congress, potentially requiring inspections up to four times a year, there have been no changes in the way the government regulates food. With headlines slowly disappearing and the industry calling for self-regulation, there seems to be no urgency to protect what the public consumes on a daily basis.

Protect yourself, your business and your customer by having your staff trained in food safety training and food handler training. While you can’t guarantee that your leafy greens are safe, at least you can guarantee that the service and preparation was. It is on us all to do our part to protect the public and it is time for the government to take a more aggressive stance on food safety inspections and regulations.

Learn2Serve Now Offering ONLINE Utah EASY Off Premise Training!

Learn2Serve is happy to announce our approval for the Utah EASY Training Program. The Eliminate Alcohol Sales to Youth (E.A.S.Y.) Law (S.B. 58) was passed by the 2006 Legislature, and became effective July 1, 2006. The E.A.S.Y. Law limits youth access to alcohol in grocery and convenience stores, authorizes law enforcement to conduct random alcohol sales compliance checks, requires mandatory training for each store employee that sells beer or directly supervises the sale of beer and funds a statewide media and education campaign to alert youth, parents, and communities of the dangers of alcohol to the developing teen. To read the rule, click here.

The Learn2Serve E.A.S.Y Off Premise Program is approved by the state of Utah and is an authorized program as required by Senate Bill 58, Eliminate Alcohol Sales to Youth. The Learn2Serve E.A.S.Y. class is for sellers of beer for "off premise" consumption in stores such as convenience stores, grocery stores, super markets and others. The Learn2Serve E.A.S.Y. program is not for restaurant, bar and club servers, bartenders or any others that serve for "on premise consumption".