Looks like a great start to the new year…healthier food!!
Instead of the FDA closing down food industries and farms after hundreds of people get sick or die, the FDA is proposing new regulations in preventing food contamination leading to food-borne disease outbreaks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 48 million people suffer from food-borne illnesses each year in the U.S. Just last summer there were 400 illnesses and 7 deaths due to salmonella in peanut butter, mangoes and cantaloupe, and listeria in cheese.
The rules for food safety would require workers to wash their hands and use clean irrigation water among other health practices. It sounds like something I practice in my own home…just makes sense.
Sounds good…yes? But it may take several years before we really see a difference in less disease outbreaks. It also involves lots of paperwork stating all the rules, and the farms would have at least 2 years to comply. It is estimated that it will also cost businesses (large farms) $30,000 per year.
So it may take some time, but at least it’s a start in preventing about 2 million illnesses a year.