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New rules aim to improve US food safety

But FDA Deputy Commissioner Michael Taylor says the new rules are worth the price.

“Even if you just look at estimated reductions in illness, but if you also take into account avoiding disruption of the food supply and the loss of confidence in those commodities by consumers, so I think we’ll see that the benefits substantially outweigh the costs of implementation.”

Caroline Smith-DeWaal is director for food safety at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. She says the rules should have been released a year ago.

“We’re really happy that the new rules have come out. They’re a little late.”

And she notes that they are not finished.

“The bigger question is, where are the rules on imports that haven’t been released yet?”

The FDA says about 15 percent of food eaten by Americans is imported, and that share is growing. Rules have not been released yet to require imported foods to meet the same standards as food produced in the United States. But the agency says they are coming soon.

The rules released this month will not go into effect for more than a year. Final versions will be announced after the agency considers public comments. And experts point out that Congress will need to approve money to enforce the new rules.