Salmonella egg outbreak over; Next outbreak likely imminent

The record-setting nationwide recall of eggs contaminated with Salmonella has officially ended, but it’s likely another of its kind is imminent.

According to a new Washington Post report, lawmakers and regulatory agencies appear caught in their own red tape when it comes to food safety, and the delays over political bickering and lobby influence are putting only the consumer at risk.

In total, the recall of several billion shelled eggs produced by either Wright County Egg or Hillandale Farms, both located in Iowa, started in May and lasted six months. Each of the farms was closed by the Food and Drug Administration long after each first began shipping tainted eggs.

More than 1,900 people nationwide reported getting sick after eating eggs from either of those farms. Each farm distributed mostly to national wholesalers, who then sold the eggs to hotels and restaurants.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed by victims of the outbreak, some who were hospitalized and many from people who suffered the worst symptoms of Salmonella poisoning.

Unfortunately, unless Washington, D.C., begins operating differently overnight, the next food-borne outbreak has already started.

Recent years have seen the massive recalls on several major foods: from ground beef, to spinach, peppers, peanut butter and eggs. Tens of thousands of people have contracted some type of food poisoning after eating just one of these products, and there are thousands more products recalled weekly also processed under dirty conditions, which leads to these outbreaks.

Ironically, the more Washington spends to curb food poisoning outbreaks, the more likely and more widespread outbreaks are. There are 15 agencies and 71 inter-agency agreements currently overseeing the nation’s food supply safety, according to WaPo. Products like beef and poultry get the most attention, but have been linked to the largest outbreaks in recent years.

It was not until July 2010 that the Food and Drug Administration passed its first-ever set of rules governing the processing, storage and distribution of eggs. Had those rules been passed and enforced, this year’s outbreak may not have happened.

But it also may have despite the rules. Rules have been in place for years governing other food groups, but manufacturers and processors have consistently run around those rules and maintained a presence on store shelves and in consumers’ kitchens.

The FDA has remained under-funded and under constant pressure from lobbyists representing the food industries. Inspectors jobs remain vacant and some food production facilities are inspected just once a year. Lobbyists, along with intra-governmental bumbling, are blamed with holding-up the passage of new rules.

So even if new rules are passed, it is upon the regulators to enforce the rules, even if the industries under those laws fail to follow. If neither does their duty, as so often happens today, the consumers will remain at risk.