News21′s Food Safety Project has provided an opportunity for journalism students and fellows at Arizona State University and University of Maryland to investigate different facets of food safety in the country. Topics range from high-risk foods to inspection and regulation to local food systems, presented with videos, articles, and interactive infographics. Citing recent outbreaks of food-borne illness, the project introduces shortcomings and new innovations to ensure food safety.

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Internet posting of data corresponding to specific meat, poultry and egg product processing plants could improve public health, among other benefits, according to The Potential Consequences of Public Release of Food Safety and Inspection Service Establishment-Specific Data, issued by the council, part of the National Academies.

The US Department of Agriculture collects large amounts of data at thousands of processing facilities as part of efforts to ensure the safety of meat, poultry and processed egg products.  The department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service is considering release of both inspection and enforcement data and sampling and testing data on its website.  This information includes data on tests for the presence of such pathogens as salmonella. Some of this information is already available online in aggregated form without processing facility names, and most of the FSIS-collected data can be obtained by the public through the Freedom of Information Act.

The committee that wrote the report looked at information on disclosing similar sorts of information and concluded there are strong arguments for publicly releasing FSIS data, including the names of processing facilities. Releasing the information could allow users to make more informed choices, spur facilities to improve performance and allow research studies of regulatory effectiveness.  Release could also increase public understanding of the information collected and could improve food safety if the public shifts to better-performing facilities.

The report acknowledges that the benefits of release must be balanced against such potential unintended harm as lower profits, misinterpretation of data, pressure on inspector performance and unintentional release of proprietary or confidential information.  The committee found limited systematic evidence indicating the likelihood of such problems, though.

The report calls on the FSIS to consult with other agencies that have released detailed regulatory data on individual facilities’ or firms’ performance, such as the Environmental Protection Agency’s Enforcement and Compliance History Online, the Labor Department’s Mine Safety and Health Administration and state and local public health departments that have released information on restaurant hygiene and inspection grading.

Clinton’s chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, spoke to NPR about the initiative. Mills touches on the potential link between food insecurity and political instability. She also responds to critics who believe that, due to budget constraints, resources are not going into Feed the Future fast enough. Listen to the interview on NPR.

The cut puts the FDA at risk of not being able to meet the requirements of the new law, food safety advocates say. Michael Taylor, the FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Foods states that while the FDA will be able to write the new regulations required by the law, they will not be able to implement the regulations without proper funding.

Funding for the USDA, which completes safety inspections on meat and poultry, is also facing proposed budget cuts from the House Appropriations Committee. 

Advocates are hoping the current E. coli outbreak in Europe will convince Congress of the importance of food safety for the nation’s food supply.