Retailers are providing their customers with food safety information and tips through the “Be Food Safe” campaign launched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Partnership for Food Safety Education. “Be Food Safe” utilizes colorful, modular icons and photography to illustrate basic safe food-handling practices. Retailers using these icons for display in stores, and in other forms of customer outreach, are helping to restore confidence in the food supply, which surveys show has dropped despite a reduction in the overall rate of foodborne illnesses.
Foodborne illness is a serious public health threat. Each year, approximately 76 million cases of foodborne illness occur in the United States alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of those cases of foodborne illness, more than 325,000 people are hospitalized and about 5,000 deaths occur.
Why Be Food Safe?
Preventing foodborne illness is one of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) top priorities. For more than 100 years, the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has worked with our Nation's commercial suppliers to ensure that meat, poultry, and egg products are safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged for public consumption. And because research shows that improper handling, preparation, and storage of food can cause foodborne illness, FSIS has conducted—and is a key stakeholder in—many public education programs to prevent foodborne illness.
What is the Be Food Safe Campaign?
USDA developed the Be Food Safe campaign in cooperation with the Partnership for Food Safety Education, FDA, and CDC because research shows that Americans are aware of food safety, but they need more information to achieve and maintain safe food handling behaviors. The Be Food Safe campaign, which is grounded in social marketing, behavior change, and risk communications theories, is designed to provide educators with the tools to inform consumers about foodborne illness and raise the level of awareness of the dangers associated with improper handling and undercooking of food.
HHS Unveils Plan to Strengthen, Update Food Safety Efforts
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Mike Leavitt Tuesday, November 6, presented a comprehensive initiative by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designed to bolster efforts to better protect the nation's food supply. The Food Protection Plan proposes the use of science and a risk-based approach to ensure the safety of domestic and imported foods eaten by American consumers. The Food Protection Plan's three strategic organizational elements are prevention, intervention, and response. This Action Plan follows the organizing principles identified in the Strategic Framework – prevention, intervention, and response – and draws on six building blocks:
1) Advance a Common Vision;
2) Increase Accountability Enforcement and Deterrence;
3) Focus on Risks over the Life Cycle of an Imported Product;
4) Build Interoperable Systems;
5) Foster a Culture of Collaboration and
6) Promote Technological Innovation and New Science.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted two new guidances for the food industry on their website: “A Food Labeling Guide” and “A Labeling Guide for Restaurants and Other Retail Establishments Selling Away-From-Home Foods.” The FDA is responsible for assuring that foods sold in the United States are safe, wholesome and properly labeled.
In the latest issue of N.G.A. Food, Nutrition & Science, by the Lempert Report, reported in the Shoppers and Trends column on the swift rise in the cost of food. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a 4.9% increase in food costs occurred for 2007 - a much higher increase than the average 2.5% in the previous seven years. The column polled readers last month to find out what they predicted for the year 2008, and found that the majority of readers are prepared for even higher rises in prices. When asked “How much do you think the price of food will go up between now and December 2008?” 26% said they expected to see prices increase by more than 15%. Still another 23% seem to think prices will increase as much as 10%. Seventeen percent of our readers expect a seven percent increase, 13% expect a five percent increase, 12% expect a four percent increase, and four percent expect a two percent increase. Only five percent foresee a 15% increase.
Compliance Guide for Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling
United Fresh Produce Association has published a new guide for the produce industry on how to comply with the upcoming country of origin labeling law, due to go into effect September 30, 2008. UFPA has prepared an analysis of the legal requirements likely to go into effect, with advice for every segment of the produce supply chain from grower-shippers to retailers.
The new White Paper "What You Need To Know Now About Complying With Country of Origin Labeling Rules" is available here.
Posters for Consumers Regarding Nutritional Information of Raw Fruits, Vegetables and Fish -- Now Available The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) has created a voluntary nutrition information program to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions that reflect their dietary needs. The FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition is providing the posters to encourage retail stores that sell raw fruits, vegetables, and fish to participate in the voluntary point-of-purchase nutrition information program (21 CFR 101.42 through 101.45).
The FDA will begin surveying stores starting March 1, 2008 to determine if there is sufficient voluntary compliance. Retailers are urged to post this valuable nutrition information as a service for health conscious consumers and avoid mandatory regulation. The regulation also states that if volunteer participation by food retailers drops below 60 percent, the FDA has the right to mandate nutrition labeling on these products.
The Corporate Challenge showcases the role industry can play as partners to government in encouraging healthier eating and physical fitness among families. The Challenge is designed to empower nutrition gatekeepers to assist them in modeling a healthy lifestyle and by providing information to help them make healthy food choices for themselves and their families.
How Can My Company Join? The Action Kit is designed to be the turn-key way for your company to join this movement and transform the way America eats. Everything you need to sign up and develop a project is included in the kit.
