Government: Public Would Benefit From Access to More Food Inspection Data
When the federal government posts information online about meat and poultry inspections or enforcement actions, the names of the processing plants involved are generally not made public, but that could change thanks to a new report from the National Research Council.
The release of such data would have substantial benefits including improved public health and increased transparency, the report concludes.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which is responsible for ensuring that meat, poultry, and processed egg products are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled, collects large amounts of data on processing plants.
The information includes inspection and enforcement data and data on tests for the presence of foodborne pathogens like Salmonella, pathogenic E. coli, and Listeria monocytogenes.
Releasing such data would enable users to make more informed choices, motivatie facilities to improve their performance, and allow research studies of regulatory effectiveness and other performance-related issues, the report states.
The study was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make up the National Academies. They are independent, nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and health policy advice under an 1863 congressional charter. Panel members serve pro bono as volunteers and are chosen by the Academies for each study based on their expertise and experience and must satisfy the Academies' conflict-of-interest standards. The resulting consensus reports undergo external peer review before completion.
Source: http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=13304&page=R1
