Donald L. Houston, D.V.M., Associate Administrator, Food Safety and Inspec- Charles C. Allen III, President, Allen Family Foods, representing the Nation- al Broiler Council, accompanied by Gary Jay Kushner, Legal Counsel, and Mahlon A. Burnette III, Ph.D., Technical Advisor. Stanley J. Emerling, Executive Vice President, National Association of Meat Kenneth T. Blaylock, National President, American Federation of Govern- ment Employees, accompanied by James Murphy, AFGA member and Vernie Gee, Inspector, Food, Safety and Inspection Service, USDA, Gardenia, CA, accompanied by Thomas Devine, Legal Director, Government Account- Rodney E. Leonard, Executive Director, Community Nutrition Institution Federal Meat Inspection Act, as amended, 21 U.S.C., 601 et seq Poultry Products Inspection Act, as amended, 21 U.S.C. 451 et seq. "Meat and Poultry Inspection: The Scientific Basis of the Nation's Program,' prepared by the Committee on the Scientific Basis of the Nation's Meat and Poultry Inspection Program, Food and Nutrition Board, Commission on Life Sciences, National Research Council, National Academy Press, 1985 (Execu- "Poultry Inspection: The Basis for a Risk-Assessment Approach," prepared by the Committee on Public Health Risk Assessment of Poultry Inspection Programs, Food and Nutrition Board, Commission on Life Sciences, Ñation- al Research Council, National Academy Press, 1987 (Executive Summary).... "Experimentation With Procedures for Determining the Intensity of Inspec- tion Coverage in Processing Establishments; Waivers of Provisions of the Regulations, Food Safety and Inspection Service," 9 CRF, Parts 303 and 381, FR Vol. 52, No. 60, 10028-10033, March 30, 1987 Report on Food Safety and Inspection Service Meat and Poultry Inspection Program to Donald L. Houston, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, from Donn E. Adkisson, Assistant Inspector General for Audit, U.S. Department of Agriculture, September 26, Status Report of Actions Taken on Recommendations: Audit of Food Safety and Inspection Service Meat and Poultry Inspection Program, #38607-1- At, to Donald L. Houston, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Serv- ice, USDA, from Robert E. Miller, Acting Assistant Inspector General for Audit, USDA, January 15, 1987. Status of Recommendations, Audit #38607-1-At, FSIS Meat and Poultry Inspection Program, to Donald L. Houston, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA, from Steadie Mixson, Regional Inspector Gener- al for Audit, USDA, February 19, 1987.. Status of FSIS Actions Taken in Response to OIG Audit of FSIS Meat and Poultry Inspection Program (150-Plant Audit), #38607-1-At, report to James R. Ebbitt, Assistant Inspector General for Audit, USDA, from Donald L. Houston, Administrator, FSIS, USDA, March 27, 1987.. Letter to Kenneth A. Gilles, Assistant Secretary, Marketing and Inspection Service, USDA, from Peter C. Myers, Deputy Secretary, USDA, April 9, Memo to Peter C. Myers, Deputy Secretary, USDA, from Kenneth A. Gilles, Assistant Secretary, Marketing and Inspection Service, USDA, April 15, Resolution of the FSIS Meat and Poultry Inspection Program Audit #38607- 1-At (memorandum), to James R. Ebbitt, Assistant Inspector General for Audit, USDA, from Donald L. Houston, Administrator, FŜIS, USDA, May 5, "Improving Sanitation and Federal Inspection at Slaughter Plants: How to Get Better Results for the Inspection Dollar," a report to the Congress by the U.S. General Accounting Office, July 30, 1981 (Executive Summary and Statement of James H. Hodges, Vice President, American Meat Institute, Statement of John Bailar for the Food and Nutrition Board, Commission on Life Sciences, National Research Council, May 15, 1987......... Statement of Joshua E. Neiman, Legislative Representative, Food and Allied Letter to Senator Carl Levin from Angelo J. Aponte, Commission, Depart- "Meat and Poultry Contamination: A Silent Public Health Hazard," An Occa- sional Paper Issued by the Research Division of the New York City Depart- ment of Consumer Affairs, Heide K. Lang, Researcher, November 1986 .. Sworn statements of U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors detailing "U.S. Inspectors Find 37% of Chickens are Contaminated with Salmonel- Page 440 527 539 539 "Serving Up Salmonella for Dinner," Joseph Carey, U.S. News and World Report, March 9, 1987.. 545 "Chicken Inspection Is Faulted," Irvin Molosky, the New York Times, May 13, 1987. 546 "Poultry Contamination Undetected, Report Says," Ward Sinclair, the Washington Post, May 13, 1987. 547 "The Great American Fish Scandal: Health Risks Unchecked," fact sheet, Public Notice for Food and Health Policy.... 549 INVESTIGATION INTO FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE (FSIS) INSPECTION ACTIVITIES FRIDAY, MAY 15, 1987 U.S. SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT OF GOVERNMENT MANAGEMENT, COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS, Washington, DC. The Subcommittee met at 9:40 a.m., pursuant to notice, in room 342 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Senator Carl Levin, Chairman of the Subcommittee, presiding. Present: Senators Levin, Cohen, Pryor, Stevens, and Roth. Staff present: Linda J. Gustitus, Staff Director and Chief Counsel; Mary Berry Gerwin, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel, Frankie de Vergie, Chief Clerk; Richard Allen, Professional Staff Member; Robert W. Porter, Jr., Minority Professional Staff Member; Trina Bragni and Jeff Carter-Campbell, Interns. OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR LEVIN Senator LEVIN. Today the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management is looking into a most serious problem, the problem of food poisoning of American consumers from federally inspected and approved meat and poultry products. This hearing has been called at the request of the Ranking Republican Member, Senator Cohen, who last year initiated a General Accounting Office investigation into the Federal Safety Inspection Service which will be discussed by our GAO witness later this morning. I commend him for bringing this important issue to the Subcommittee's attention. Food poisoning is not a new problem. No doubt our prehistoric ancestors suffered illness or death when the food they ate was contaminated. More recently food poisonings from salmonella and other exotic bacteria have significantly increased in the United States in recent years. In fact, the number of reported food poisoning cases has doubled in the last 10 years, notwithstanding the fact that the Federal Safety and Inspection Service in the Department of Agriculture inspects and labels virtually every piece of meat and poultry that leaves a processing plant. In my State of Michigan, for example, the number of reported poisonings from salmonella in 1976 was 889. In 1986, 10 years later, |