The weaknesses in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) policy on E. coli are becoming very clear, thanks to the latest recall of beef for E. coli 0157:H7. This weekend’s announcement that the recall of beef products from a JBS Swift Beef Company plant in Greeley, Colorado had been expanded is just the latest illustration of why USDA’s policies must be strengthened.

When it first announced the recall last week, USDA said that agency testing results led to the recall of 41,000 pounds of various cuts of beef from one day’s production at the plant.  Over the weekend, USDA announced that products from the plant have been linked to illnesses in multiple states and expanded the recall to include 380,000 pounds – a portion of one day’s production in April.

This recall illustrates several critical gaps in USDA’s E. coli policy, which consumer groups for years have been urging the agency to fix, including:

- Product Testing: The agency has said this recall was the result of its testing program.  But a more robust testing program that covers more stages of production could have reduced the lag time between production and recall. During the two months that passed between the production of this batch of beef and when it was recalled, the potentially dangerous product was distributed across the country to retailers and other processors who grind it into ground beef or use it in other products. This makes an effective recall of the product unlikely and puts consumers at increased risk.

- Treating E. Coli as an Adulterant: USDA currently treats E. coli 0157:H7 as an adulterant only in ground beef.  This confuses the agency’s efforts to follow up when testing reveals contamination at the retail level or in products made from contaminated beef. The agency should designate E. coli 0157:H7 as an adulterant in beef at any stage of production to ensure that contamination is caught sooner in the processing chain.

- Disclosing Where Recalled Products are Sold: Last year, the agency adopted a new regulation that it would disclose the retailers carrying recalled products in Class I recalls (those posing serious health risks to consumers).  This is a Class I recall yet the agency has not released the names of retailers where this product was sold. The agency’s failure to disclose information that could alert consumers that they may have purchased a recalled product is unacceptable.

It should not take more illnesses or another massive recall of E. coli-contaminated beef products to get USDA to improve its policies and protect public health.  It is time for the agency to act.

Food & Water Watch, a nonprofit consumer organization based in Washington, D.C., works to ensure clean water and safe food in the United States and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink. For more information, visit www.foodandwaterwatch.org.

(Por Wenonah Hauter*, Food & Water Watch, 29/06/2009)

* Director-executivo da Food & Water Watch