FoodTRACE » Political

Political

In the area of food safety there are two bills that are going to have an impact on every food company in the United States as well as abroad.  The process of a bill becoming law is over simplified but fairly accurate here:

  1. The House of Representatives passes a bill
  2. The Senate passes their version of the same bill
  3. A committee consisting of House and Senate members review the two bills and combine them into one
  4. The House of Representatives passes this final version
  5. The Senate passes this same final version
  6. The Bill is sent to the Presidents desk for signing

That is what is happening now with Food Safety.

The House of Representatives, in late 2009, passed HR2749, The Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009.  The Senate’s version is SB510, The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009.  Discussion and voting has been delayed because of the Health Care Bill which has priority currently.  Following the outcome of the Health Bill, it is expected that SB510 will be voted on rather quickly and passed in the Senate.  At that point a committee of House and Senate members will work to combine HR2749 and SB510 into one bill.  This will not be hard to do as the similarities in the bills far outweigh the discrepancies.  That final version of the bill which comes out of committee will then be voted on in Congress, expected to pass, and sent to the President’s desk, who has indicated an eagerness to sign a food safety bill.

Bills are lengthy, voluminous in wordage, but they are readable and understandable.  You can read full versions of both HR2749 and SB510, which are current as of January 1, 2010.  In both versions you will find areas that affect your companies.  Not only in the area of traceability, but in other areas as well.  We strongly suggest you review both of the bills which are posted on this site.  Specifically in each bill, you will find a section on traceability.  The FoodTRACE program is designed so that it exceeds all areas addressed in the bill in those areas.  To our knowledge, we are the only offering out there with a complete solution, not only for produce, but for food, both domestic and imported.