By SooToday.com Staff
SooToday.com
Wednesday, July 02, 2008

NEWS RELEASE

CONGRESSMAN
BART STUPAK
1ST CONGRESSIONAL
DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN

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Stupak on beef recall

WASHINGTON - U.S. Congressman Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, issued the following statement regarding the recall of 530,000 pounds of beef from grocery stores in Michigan and more than 20 other states:

“The recall of more than half a million pounds of beef as we head into the Fourth of July weekend is further proof that our nation’s food safety system is broken. As Americans prepare for this holiday weekend they shouldn’t have to worry about being sickened by a hamburger or the tomato they put on it.

“Food-borne illnesses such as E. coli and salmonella are preventable, but FDA and USDA are not doing nearly enough to stop these outbreaks before they start. I have held eight food safety hearings since January 2007 in which we have outlined necessary changes to our nation’s food safety system and emphasized private sector accountability. The investigation into the safety of our nation’s food supply will continue and I will continue using the results of this investigation to push for critical food and drug safety reforms.”

Stupak, as chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, has held eight hearings since January 2007 on food safety.

The committee is planning a ninth hearing later this month to investigate the recent salmonella outbreak that has sickened at least 869 people nationwide.

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