Lawmaker: Nation's food system is collapsing
Pastor Dale Morgan
Lawmaker: Nation's food system is collapsing*
* Story Highlights
* Nearly 12 million cattle nationwide are being readied for
slaughter this year
* Humane Society video showing slaughterhouse abuse triggered
massive recall
* Inspector shortages, powerful meat lobby influence on USDA
concerns advocates
* USDA considering installing cameras in 378 livestock slaughterhouses
FORT MORGAN, Colorado (CNN) -- On a ranch nestled in the high plains of
northeastern Colorado, thousands of cattle are being fattened up and
prepared for slaughter.
Beef
Undercover video released by the Humane Society raised concerns about
safety of meat processing plants.
Owner Gary Teague's operation seems enormous: 20,000 head of cattle over
25,000 acres. But it's a relatively tiny part of an industry with an
estimated worth of more than $100 billion annually.
"There are over 800,000 beef producers like myself across the country
that are working hard every day to ensure that the product we put out
there is safe and wholesome," Teague said.
But some are concerned about the health of nation's meat inspection
system. As nearly 12 million cattle nationwide are being readied for
slaughter this year to satisfy America's passion for beef, new questions
have arisen about the safety of the nation's meat supply and the agency
that oversees it.
Graphic undercover video taped and released by the Humane Society of the
United States this year raised questions about the safety of meat
processing plants. Downed cattle shown in the video, by regulation,
should have been examined by a U.S. Department of Agriculture
veterinarian before they were slaughtered to make sure no animal with
mad cow disease had entered the nation's food supply.
But those examinations never happened.
Stanley Painter, who was a USDA inspector for 22 years, says the agency,
which oversees food safety and inspection, doesn't allow inspectors to
enforce regulations. He says that sometimes, plants fix the problems
discovered by inspectors, and sometimes they don't.
By federal law, there are inspectors at each of the nation's
slaughterhouses. Painter, who now heads the union that represents
inspectors, said that in some parts of the country, there are 20 percent
fewer inspectors than there should be. Nationwide, the vacancy figure is
just under 11 percent.
"They are telling us to 'let the system work,' " Painter told CNN.
"Which means that if you see a problem, stand back and watch and see
what the plant is going to do with it."
Responsibility for food regulation is splintered among 15 federal
agencies. Some influential lawmakers, like Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro
of Connecticut, are also concerned. She's among those who believe an
independent food inspection agency is needed to protect consumers from
food-borne illnesses.
"It's never going to be perfect," DeLauro said. "But what we have now is
a food system that is collapsing."
Jay Truitt disagrees. The former top official with the National
Cattlemen's Beef Association says the multilayered food inspection
system works well.
"It's a great system, and we've done a great job," he said. "We
literally are looked at around the world ... as having the safest
product on the planet."
Despite claims that the nation's food supply is safe, the videos
released by the Humane Society triggered the largest meat recall in U.S.
history and the plant shut down.
In addition to safety concerns, serious questions have also been raised
about how many former beef industry lobbyists are working in top
positions at the USDA.
The USDA website, www.usda.gov, shows five key staffers who once worked
for the National Cattleman's Beef Association - the industry's most
powerful lobbying group. The man in charge of the lobbying arm of the
nation's meat packers was also a top USDA official.
"Even with my former ties at USDA, I am not of the view that I have any
influence with the department, "said Patrick Boyle, head of the American
Meat Institute.
But food safety advocates disagree. They say the cross-pollination
between the meat industry and government has made the lobby a major force.
"The fact that they've managed to put some of their former key people in
key positions at USDA makes them very powerful," said Tony Corbo of Food
and Water Watch.
The meat recall triggered by the Humane Society video, one of the
largest in history, was opposed by the industry because no one had
become ill. Nevertheless, food safety advocates say there was one aspect
of that recall that illustrated the meat industry's influence with the USDA.
"We cannot even get a list of the retail outlets where this product was
sent," DeLauro said. "We cannot get a list of schools where this product
was sent, and that's because the industry regards and has labeled these
lists as proprietary."
Food safety advocates have been pushing for USDA regulation that would
include such information on food labels. But that regulation has been
tied up for two years.
For its part, the USDA is considering relatively modest changes, such as
installing cameras in the nation's 378 livestock slaughterhouses.
"It's one of the changes we would consider," said Dr. Richard Raymond of
the USDA. "Not specifically considering just that. There's got to be
some changes made probably based on the investigation. We're going to do
whatever works best."
Back at the Teague ranch in Colorado, the view is that the system
doesn't need to be fixed because it isn't broken.
"We have the safest beef product today on plates that we have ever
seen," Teague said. "The fact that USDA is in charge of regulating this
industry and making sure that we're doing the right things for the right
reasons, I think, speaks for itself."