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THE LATEST NEWS ON THE FOOD "SAFETY" ACT (S.510)
PRESS RELEASE
THE U.S. SENATE WILL BE VOTING ON THE FOOD “SAFETY” BILL
By Lee Bechtel
NHF Lobbyist
April 20, 2010
Because of several U.S. Administration nominations that have taken
priority, the U.S. Senate, which was expected to take up U.S. Senator Dick
Durbin’s Food Safety Act (S.510) as early as next week, will instead
consider the bill in two to three weeks. When it does, there are several
issues likely to be addressed with amendments to the bill. As readers
will recall, this bill is more trash on a stick, intended not to address
any food-safety problems but simply to expand government control over the
food economy.
What’s at Stake
S.510 is nothing more than the House bill H.R.2749 in Senate clothing. It
requires registration of all food facilities, including manufacturers,
processors, packers and storage facilities. Any such facility that
introduces food into interstate commerce without being registered and
having paid the mandatory registration fee would be subject to penalties
for marketing misbranded food.
But there’s more – registered facilities must implement hazard analysis,
risk-based preventive controls, and food safety plans. For large
commercial operations and Agribusiness with their retained professional
staffs of attorneys and accountants, these additional costs will be barely
noticed, and certainly passed on to us consumers; but for small farms and
small operations, these regulatory requirements will be oppressively
burdensome, even fatal. Just as ominously, and in typical Washington, D.C.
fashion, the proposed law would cause supplement manufacturers who are
already subject to intensive Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), to scrap
their just-implemented GMPs and implement instead another set of costly
GMPs! Fortunately, Senators Hatch and Harkin are taking action to ensure
that supplement companies are exempted.
In essence, though, this bill proposes total Federal government control
over and tracking of food production, distribution, and sales – supposedly
to ensure “food safety” but which powers in fact would be unconstitutional
and unnecessary. Under S.510/H.R.2749, the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) would empower the government to regulate food production at all
levels, up and down the chain of production. This seems quite laughable
seeing that for some time now mainstream media headlines have reported that
the FDA is unable to keep up with food-safety regulation at any level, so,
why add to their already unattainable workload?
Then, as a kicker, the bill provides for criminal prosecution of those
producers, manufacturers, and distributors who fail to comply with the new
laws, and punitive property seizures and large fines for each offense upon
conviction. And for those who have been following Codex, you have almost
certainly not missed the fact that S.510/H.R.2749’s “science-based”
approach tracks that found in Codex food guidelines.
The Latest News on S.510
The latest from Senate staff insiders is that Senators Hatch, Harkin, and
Enzi will be offering a Manager’s Amendment to clean up details not clearly
addressed when the Senate HELP committee unanimously approved S.510 last
Fall.
In particular, they will offer clearer language on the FDA's involvement
with Codex and dietary supplements. In the original Harkin bill reported
from committee, language was included asking the FDA to report to Congress
on whether and how to harmonize foreign food-processing standards with U.S.
law, but stating that Codex does not apply to the US regulation of
supplements. The revised language directs the FDA to report to Congress on
any Codex activities related to conventional food and/or supplement
standards under consideration, before taking any regulatory action in the
future. This is almost precisely what the NHF, the Sunshine Health Freedom
Foundation, and the National Health Freedom Coalition were supporting and
pushing last Fall (see
S.510 Food Safety - Only Partial Victory), even though
other groups were oblivious to the need to do this at that time. Some
have changed their tune since then.
Recently-Claimed Victory?
In fact, recently, there was an announced “victory” concerning supplements
having been exempted from Codex language in the "Food Safety" bill, which
sounded quite nice as consumers definitely need more victories in any
food-related legislation. Unfortunately, though, as anyone following this
bill closely would know, this was not a recently-won victory. The actual
exemption language had already been in this particular bill for some time
now, due to the efforts of several organizations and many individuals; so,
sadly, no real victory should have been claimed. To trot out an old
victory and proclaim it as one’s own would be like George Bush claiming
credit for winning World War II.
Regardless, despite this “non-recent” improvement in the statutory bill
language, the NHF still opposes passage of S.510. The Federal legislative
process is like making sausage, as everyone knows, that is, the bill at
issue gets stuffed with everyone’s favorite pork. That does not make the
bill any better – that’s just political logrolling. And we should not
stand for it.
The Latest on S.3002
A second issue is that while the NHF and other health-freedom groups and
their memberships lobbied and were somewhat successful in getting Senator
McCain to back off of his so-called Dietary Supplement Safety Act (S.3002),
the latest is that Senator Arlen Spector (D-PA) is expected to offer a “Son
of McCain” bill amendment to S.510. The health-freedom Senators and their
staffs are working on how to prevent this, but Harry Reid and Dick Durbin
are the two in charge of the Senate schedule. To be fair and balanced, the
exact language of a Spector amendment has not been released to members or
their staff, preventing us from knowing whether it will attempt to do the
same as the original McCain bill proposed, which was to repeal the Dietary
Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), or something else of lesser
harm. The sausage is still in the making.
Take Action Now
Despite the NHF’s, and other health-freedom groups’, successful lobbying
efforts and grassroots letter writing campaign to protect the intent and
letter of the DSHEA law, the so-called Food Safety Act (S.510) is still a
threat to our health and health freedoms. To block the FDA from its goal
of harmonizing U.S. food law to international food standards, via use of
the Codex mechanisms, the NHF still opposes the intent and purposes of
S.510. The bill fundamentally only addresses conventional foods, and not
supplements; but it is still a bill that will adversely affect all of our
health, unnecessarily raise food costs, put chains upon domestic food
producers, and increase yet again our costly, parasitic Federal
bureaucracy. It must be stopped.
Take action now by writing your Senators stating your firm opposition to
S.510. The time for registering your opinion is short, but continued
action is necessary for us to be successful. Go to
www.thenhf.com/government_affairs/federal/s510_sample_petition.doc for a
sample letter to send to your Senator to register your opposition.
Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Dick Durbin, and Henry Waxman have
so far been successful in their quest for a complete government takeover of
health care, despite the opposition of the vast majority of Americans, who
are not being listened to. In the current political and legislative
atmosphere, every crack in the door for the anti-supplement, pro-Federal
control and anti-individual responsibility Congressional leadership is
being used to spend, tax, and hire an ever-growing mob of Federal
bureaucrats.
Sample Letter to Your Senators - Click Here
********************
Click on this address to find your U.S. Senators: U.S. Senate
Contact Information to E-mail Senators:
U.S. Senate: Senators Home
The Senate main number is (202) 224-3121
********************
As the oldest and best-respected health-freedom group on Capitol Hill, the NHF
continues to be the credible source of objective assessment of, and proactive
actions on, Congressional legislation and FDA matters that have material impact upon
our freedom-of-health choices and access to dietary supplements and nutritional
foods.
********************
Click here for the permanent link to this press release, use this link to inform
others.
National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a
consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals'
rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative
therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such
organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings.
National Health Federation - a not-for-profit consumer-education, health-freedom organization
**************************************
PRESS RELEASE
THE U.S. SENATE WILL BE VOTING ON THE FOOD “SAFETY” BILL
By Lee Bechtel
NHF Lobbyist
April 20, 2010
Because of several U.S. Administration nominations that have taken
priority, the U.S. Senate, which was expected to take up U.S. Senator Dick
Durbin’s Food Safety Act (S.510) as early as next week, will instead
consider the bill in two to three weeks. When it does, there are several
issues likely to be addressed with amendments to the bill. As readers
will recall, this bill is more trash on a stick, intended not to address
any food-safety problems but simply to expand government control over the
food economy.
What’s at Stake
S.510 is nothing more than the House bill H.R.2749 in Senate clothing. It
requires registration of all food facilities, including manufacturers,
processors, packers and storage facilities. Any such facility that
introduces food into interstate commerce without being registered and
having paid the mandatory registration fee would be subject to penalties
for marketing misbranded food.
But there’s more – registered facilities must implement hazard analysis,
risk-based preventive controls, and food safety plans. For large
commercial operations and Agribusiness with their retained professional
staffs of attorneys and accountants, these additional costs will be barely
noticed, and certainly passed on to us consumers; but for small farms and
small operations, these regulatory requirements will be oppressively
burdensome, even fatal. Just as ominously, and in typical Washington, D.C.
fashion, the proposed law would cause supplement manufacturers who are
already subject to intensive Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), to scrap
their just-implemented GMPs and implement instead another set of costly
GMPs! Fortunately, Senators Hatch and Harkin are taking action to ensure
that supplement companies are exempted.
In essence, though, this bill proposes total Federal government control
over and tracking of food production, distribution, and sales – supposedly
to ensure “food safety” but which powers in fact would be unconstitutional
and unnecessary. Under S.510/H.R.2749, the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) would empower the government to regulate food production at all
levels, up and down the chain of production. This seems quite laughable
seeing that for some time now mainstream media headlines have reported that
the FDA is unable to keep up with food-safety regulation at any level, so,
why add to their already unattainable workload?
Then, as a kicker, the bill provides for criminal prosecution of those
producers, manufacturers, and distributors who fail to comply with the new
laws, and punitive property seizures and large fines for each offense upon
conviction. And for those who have been following Codex, you have almost
certainly not missed the fact that S.510/H.R.2749’s “science-based”
approach tracks that found in Codex food guidelines.
The Latest News on S.510
The latest from Senate staff insiders is that Senators Hatch, Harkin, and
Enzi will be offering a Manager’s Amendment to clean up details not clearly
addressed when the Senate HELP committee unanimously approved S.510 last
Fall.
In particular, they will offer clearer language on the FDA's involvement
with Codex and dietary supplements. In the original Harkin bill reported
from committee, language was included asking the FDA to report to Congress
on whether and how to harmonize foreign food-processing standards with U.S.
law, but stating that Codex does not apply to the US regulation of
supplements. The revised language directs the FDA to report to Congress on
any Codex activities related to conventional food and/or supplement
standards under consideration, before taking any regulatory action in the
future. This is almost precisely what the NHF, the Sunshine Health Freedom
Foundation, and the National Health Freedom Coalition were supporting and
pushing last Fall (see
S.510 Food Safety - Only Partial Victory), even though
other groups were oblivious to the need to do this at that time. Some
have changed their tune since then.
Recently-Claimed Victory?
In fact, recently, there was an announced “victory” concerning supplements
having been exempted from Codex language in the "Food Safety" bill, which
sounded quite nice as consumers definitely need more victories in any
food-related legislation. Unfortunately, though, as anyone following this
bill closely would know, this was not a recently-won victory. The actual
exemption language had already been in this particular bill for some time
now, due to the efforts of several organizations and many individuals; so,
sadly, no real victory should have been claimed. To trot out an old
victory and proclaim it as one’s own would be like George Bush claiming
credit for winning World War II.
Regardless, despite this “non-recent” improvement in the statutory bill
language, the NHF still opposes passage of S.510. The Federal legislative
process is like making sausage, as everyone knows, that is, the bill at
issue gets stuffed with everyone’s favorite pork. That does not make the
bill any better – that’s just political logrolling. And we should not
stand for it.
The Latest on S.3002
A second issue is that while the NHF and other health-freedom groups and
their memberships lobbied and were somewhat successful in getting Senator
McCain to back off of his so-called Dietary Supplement Safety Act (S.3002),
the latest is that Senator Arlen Spector (D-PA) is expected to offer a “Son
of McCain” bill amendment to S.510. The health-freedom Senators and their
staffs are working on how to prevent this, but Harry Reid and Dick Durbin
are the two in charge of the Senate schedule. To be fair and balanced, the
exact language of a Spector amendment has not been released to members or
their staff, preventing us from knowing whether it will attempt to do the
same as the original McCain bill proposed, which was to repeal the Dietary
Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), or something else of lesser
harm. The sausage is still in the making.
Take Action Now
Despite the NHF’s, and other health-freedom groups’, successful lobbying
efforts and grassroots letter writing campaign to protect the intent and
letter of the DSHEA law, the so-called Food Safety Act (S.510) is still a
threat to our health and health freedoms. To block the FDA from its goal
of harmonizing U.S. food law to international food standards, via use of
the Codex mechanisms, the NHF still opposes the intent and purposes of
S.510. The bill fundamentally only addresses conventional foods, and not
supplements; but it is still a bill that will adversely affect all of our
health, unnecessarily raise food costs, put chains upon domestic food
producers, and increase yet again our costly, parasitic Federal
bureaucracy. It must be stopped.
Take action now by writing your Senators stating your firm opposition to
S.510. The time for registering your opinion is short, but continued
action is necessary for us to be successful. Go to
www.thenhf.com/government_affairs/federal/s510_sample_petition.doc for a
sample letter to send to your Senator to register your opposition.
Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Dick Durbin, and Henry Waxman have
so far been successful in their quest for a complete government takeover of
health care, despite the opposition of the vast majority of Americans, who
are not being listened to. In the current political and legislative
atmosphere, every crack in the door for the anti-supplement, pro-Federal
control and anti-individual responsibility Congressional leadership is
being used to spend, tax, and hire an ever-growing mob of Federal
bureaucrats.
Sample Letter to Your Senators - Click Here
********************
Click on this address to find your U.S. Senators: U.S. Senate
Contact Information to E-mail Senators:
U.S. Senate: Senators Home
The Senate main number is (202) 224-3121
********************
As the oldest and best-respected health-freedom group on Capitol Hill, the NHF
continues to be the credible source of objective assessment of, and proactive
actions on, Congressional legislation and FDA matters that have material impact upon
our freedom-of-health choices and access to dietary supplements and nutritional
foods.
********************
Click here for the permanent link to this press release, use this link to inform
others.
National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a
consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals'
rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative
therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such
organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings.
National Health Federation - a not-for-profit consumer-education, health-freedom organization
**************************************
