Food Safety in a Globalized World

A couple of weeks ago I attended a symposium sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)entitled "Food and Drugs:  Can Safety Be Ensured in a Time of Increased Globalization?"  This symposium, like all of those I have attended that have been sponsored by CFR, was outstanding.  It was "on the record" so anything I relate in this my first blog is okay to share with you.  The audience (about 150 were registered and listed in the program) was a mix of those representing multinational pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, consumer protection organizations, global security agencies, risk analysts, and government officials.  Margaret Hamburg, Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a woman I have admired greatly for many years, was the keynote presenter, setting the stage for the remainder of the meeting.  She indicated that 20 to 25% of all consumer purchases are now food and drug products and 80% of our drug ingredients come from abroad (40% of our finished pharmaceutical products come from abroad).  We definitely need a global alliance of regulators to ensure safety of these products.  One of the most startling statistics provided was that only 1% of all food and drug imports are inspected by U.S. officials and there is concern that, with proposed budget cuts, this percentage with drop even lower.  We were told that a recent study of a cheeseburger produced by a well known fast food vendor involved products--meat, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sauces, and bread--from 54 countries!

The program consisted of three very knowledgeable panels that discussed policy challenges and potential solutions.  It's obvious that we as consumers must demand safe food and drugs.  I am reminded that "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair was written in 1906 to expose the poor working conditions of those laboring in the meat packing plants of Chicago, a novel that led to the establishment of the Pure Food and Drug Laws and the FDA.  One recommendation to protect our current food and drug supply was based on a system for tracking any specific product using technology available and used by finacial institutions to track our credit card usage.

As a public health educator, I am indebted to CFR for all their wonderful programs.  This semester my global health course is "Public Health in Film and Fiction."  Our first class was based on the book and film "The Constant Gardener" and our second class focused on "The Jungle" as well as the film "Food, Inc."  The CFR symposium was perfectly timed for me and my students.  I send kudos to Richard Haas, the Council President, and Laurie Garrett, CFR Senior Fellow for Global Health, for an outstanding program.




Margaret Hamburg, FDA Commissioner

 


Laurie Garrett, Senior Fellow for Global Health,
 Council on Foreign Relations