FDA Proposed Rules to Modernize the Food Safety System for the 21st Century

Two new rules have been proposed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ensure that the imported food matches the same safety standards as the food produced in the United States.

The two new rules are a part of the bipartisan Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) that was signed by President Obama, according to press release.

The rules have been proposed as an approach to modernize the food safety systems for the 21^st century. FSMA aims at preventing food safety issues.

According to the rule, the importers will be responsible for checking that the modern, prevention-oriented food safety practices are being implemented by their foreign suppliers. They would also be responsible for achieving the same level of food safety that is maintained by the domestic growers.

"We must work toward global solutions to food safety so that whether you serve your family food grown locally or imported you can be confident that it is safe," said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D. "Today's announcement of these two new proposed rules will help to meet the challenges of our complex global food supply system. Our success will depend in large part on partnerships across nations, industries, and business sectors."

Nearly 150 countries export food to the United States, which accounts for 15 percent of the U.S. food supply including 50 percent of fresh fruits and 20 percent of fresh vegetables.

 "FSMA provides the FDA with a modern tool kit that shifts the paradigm for imports, as well as domestic foods, from a strategy of reaction to one of systematic prevention," said Michael R. Taylor, deputy commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine. "Rather than relying primarily on FDA investigators at the ports to detect and respond to food safety problems, importers would, for the first time, be held accountable for verifying, in a manner transparent to the FDA, that the food they import is safe."

With this rule, importers in the U.S. will have to bear the responsibility of verifying whether or not the suppliers produce food that meets food safety demands of U.S.