The United States has enacted the most thorough and rigorous standards for food safety. Congress enacted The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) with the goal of preventing foodborne illness. The nation’s food safety system had primarily been a system which only responded and reacted to foodborne illness outbreaks. However, the current FSMA policy is focused on regulations which will be proactive in preventing outbreaks.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates approximately 48 million people in the U.S. get sick from foodborne illness. Approximately 128,000 people are hospitalized and approximately 3,000 dies annually. These numbers were significant enough to turn the focus to develop the best practices details for keeping food safe. These standards include agriculture water risk assessment, field personnel training, environmental risk assessment, field & transport sanitation, soil amendments, equipment cleaning and sanitation, food safety practices for harvest and assessment of potential and actual animal and human intrusion. These procedures require monitoring, auditing, and testing of crops for different pathogens which could provide food safety concerns.
Human intrusion was not a big factor of concern until the borders were freely opened. Produce farmers in adjoining states are experiencing numerous illegal crossers, walking in and through fields and homesteading in fields. Upon identifying an area of intrusion, the producer must mark the area with flags, monitor and/or test and not harvest the area and destroy the remains. One producer stated, 30 Haitian illegals homestead his field and would not leave. The grower had to disc the intruded 10-acre area of celery which roughly cost him $10,000 an acre to grow. That is a $100,000 loss to the grower for just one intrusion. The infringed area was contaminated with human feces and urine and other potential contaminates. Remember, foodborne illnesses are caused by food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites, or toxins.
The growers lose their initial investment in planting, growing and lose the cost to remedy the intrusion to ensure that pathogens and contaminants do not remain in the soil for the next growing season. Contaminants from the intruder could include contaminated soil from another area, manure, seeds, invasive larva, or contaminated food. These items are generally brought in on an intruder’s body, shoes, clothes, or belongings. The producers also spend millions of dollars on preventative measures to reduce intrusion by both humans and animals.
These intrusions cost the producers millions and provide a shortage of harvested food for consumption by the American people. The shortage also provides a shortage supply problem which increases the cost of the product. In addition to the increase in price the reckless intruders’ actions put the American consumer at risk with potential food safety issues
The United States can enact the best policies for the American public and American trust, however, if they can’t regulate outsiders to abide by the same standards, we are still at risks for food shortages, rising food costs and potential food safety issues. These issue effect all American citizens. Let’s hope and pray for the enactment of control of our borders and the people entering our great nation.