Food Imperialism - World Wide US Inspections in Producer Countries

[C. Flower]

Quite extraordinary - the US is now demanding access to inspect foods going to the US in the country in which they are produced. Swiss chocolatiers are reported as not happy.

How long before you meet one of these guys in a field near you ?

Chocolatiers in Switzerland are infuriated by US inspections on their universally-loved confectionary for bioterrorism or radioactive threats. Factories have no choice but allow checks; otherwise will they be banned from the profitable US market.
*At least 21 Swiss chocolate factories and 18 dairies are obliged to allow inspections of their work until September 20, German business journal Handelszeitung reports.

“The fact that a foreign authority is involved in our Swiss businesses is unseemly,” Daniel Bloch, of Chocolates Camille Bloch told the journal.

Despite the anger and disappointment, chocolate manufactories want to continue to sell chocolate to the US.

But the planned examinations turned out to go well beyond health issues or such details as sales, ownership, employees and the sizes of company buildings.

“We ask ourselves, what is the real reason for the FDA inspections,” Jacques Gygax, director of the Swiss dairy association Fromarte.

The reason for that is the new America’s Food Safety Modernization Act, signed by President Obama in April 2011. From that time onwards Americans check all the food coming from abroad, Swiss chocolate no exception, in the country where products were produced prior to export. Before the Act, examinations were conducted at the US border.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suspect imported food could be contaminated chemically or even in a radioactive way.

http://rt.com/news/swiss-chocolate-b...nspectors-615/

[Count Bobulescu]

Quite extraordinary - the US is now demanding access to inspect foods going to the US in the country in which they are produced. Swiss chocolatiers are reported as not happy.

How long before you meet one of these guys in a field near you ?



http://rt.com/news/swiss-chocolate-b...nspectors-615/

Ah CF, see that’s what happens when you rely on dodgy news sources like RT. Your quote says the inspections in Switzerland only last until Sept. 20. It says nothing about what will happen after that.

Then the piece says:

But the planned examinations turned out to go well beyond health issues or such details as sales, ownership, employees and the sizes of company buildings.

and leaves it hanging there without explanation of what the extra issues are.

RT just trying to stoke up trouble. Yawn!

[C. Flower]

Ah CF, see that’s what happens when you rely on dodgy news sources like RT. Your quote says the inspections in Switzerland only last until Sept. 20. It says nothing about what will happen after that.

Then the piece says:

and leaves it hanging there without explanation of what the extra issues are.

RT just trying to stoke up trouble. Yawn!

Would you have any more information about this Act ?

The reason for that is the new America’s Food Safety Modernization Act, signed by President Obama in April 2011. From that time onwards Americans check all the food coming from abroad, Swiss chocolate no exception, in the country where products were produced prior to export. Before the Act, examinations were conducted at the US border.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suspect imported food could be contaminated chemically or even in a radioactive way.

An army of FDA officials with geiger counters on the way ?

[Baron von Biffo]

If even a tenth of what Pallast wrote in The Best Democracy Money Can Buy is true, the worst thing a terrorist could do to Americans is to cut off their supply of clean food from abroad.

It's possible to examine imports for potential dangers once they arrived at the destination country so there's no legitimate reason to have hordes of snoopers in the producers premises. Perhaps the true reason for this law is industrial espionage.

[Count Bobulescu]

Would you have any more information about this Act ?


An army of FDA officials with geiger counters on the way ?

More info? More than you can...............
It applies to US producers as well, and they mostly supported it. Industry and consumer groups advocated for it. It’s very popular here. Those Swissies are just...............nattering naybobs of negativism.

http://www.fda.gov/food/foodsafety/fsma/default.htm

http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/FSMA/ucm247548.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FDA_Foo...ernization_Act

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/...cus-prevention

July 17 (Reuters) - Families, public health advocates and consumer groups called on the White House on Tuesday to implement delayed provisions in a food safety law they say would help prevent some of the nearly 3,000 deaths caused by food-borne illnesses each year.

Families of victims who have died from food-borne illnesses and consumer and health organizations wrote a letter to President Barack Obama calling on him push forward provisions of a food safety law signed last year that would regulate food imports, produce and packaged food against possible contamination.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1678370.html

Center for Food Safety Sues Feds for Stalling on Food Safety Rules

In my role as policy consultant for the Center for Food Safety (CFS), I recently wrote about how the Obama administration is playing politics and putting public health at risk by stalling on critical food safety regulations needed to implement the Food Safety Modernization Act. I am happy to report that the lawyers at Center for Food Safety aren't waiting any longer. Along with the Center for Environmental Health, CFS has filed a lawsuit in federal court against both the Food and Drug Administration and the White House Office of Management and Budget for failing to comply with mandated statutory deadlines.
Here is how Reuters reports the story:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michel...b_1843580.html

"It's an unusual and shining example of how bipartisanship can work in Congress," said Erik Olson, director of the Pew Health Group food programs, which led a coalition of consumer groups that backed the bill. "It is a major step forward protecting the food that everyone eats every day."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...112903881.html

http://www.naturalnews.com/Food_Safe...ation_Act.html

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/...w-health-group

[Count Bobulescu]

from another thread.

quote=Count Bobulescu;274855]
Quote:
Originally Posted by C. Flower

As I pointed out in the other thread, the legislation exists, and i further pointed out that RT claimed there were additional problems with the legislation, but failed to specify what those problems were, and left readers hanging.

My concern was that you used incomplete, or I would say inaccurate, information from RT to give a thread a title unsupported by the facts.
Well, you did not say that on the thread. You dismissed the report on the grounds that it was by RT. As yet, I have never seen you provide evidence that an RT report was incorrect. There was ample grounds for the title in the facts as reported. The issue was that the US had passed legislation requiring food inspections outside the US.

This is the thread, if you would like to continue the discussion on it.

http://www.politicalworld.org/showth...hocolate+swiss

Ok this is a carryover from another discussion. The thread title is unwarranted because there is nothing even slightly remotely imperialistic about the Food Safety Modernization Act. Non US food producers are not being asked to do anything not also asked of US producers. And as WaPo pointed out the act was also unique in having almost universal support among politicians, consumers and industry.

[fluffybiscuits]

from another thread.



Ok this is a carryover from another discussion. The thread title is unwarranted because there is nothing even slightly remotely imperialistic about the Food Safety Modernization Act. Non US food producers are not being asked to do anything not also asked of US producers. And as WaPo pointed out the act was also unique in having almost universal support among politicians, consumers and industry.

As far as I am aware the FDA has been inspecting pharmecutical plants here also as well as other non EU compliancy agencies to ensure adherence to standards. A recent tightening of the inspections now allows for more inspections of foreign factories actually and manufacturing plants (http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-...ug-inspections). If there is a case that countries are concerned there should be non disclosure agreements signed as a minimum by the US to ensure that there is not going to be any leaking and any sort of industrial espionage. If such a thing happens and a product is copied or secrets leaked sue the hole of the US. Its not an ideal situation but the US knows that they have some of these industries over a barrell and they will bend to their will.

[C. Flower]

from another thread.



Ok this is a carryover from another discussion. The thread title is unwarranted because there is nothing even slightly remotely imperialistic about the Food Safety Modernization Act. Non US food producers are not being asked to do anything not also asked of US producers. And as WaPo pointed out the act was also unique in having almost universal support among politicians, consumers and industry.

That is your view. I will consider myself wrong if it turns out that the US welcomes this type of food inspections on its territory from all other countries.

Those Swissies are just...............nattering naybobs of negativism.

Not Imperialist at all ?

[Count Bobulescu]

That is your view. I will consider myself wrong if it turns out that the US welcomes this type of food inspections on its territory from all other countries.
Not Imperialist at all ?

By that standard you’re unlikely to ever be proved wrong. It would require all other countries to implement legislation similar to the US, a remote possibility especially in poorer and famine stricken countries. And it would require the US to object to such legislation. AFAIK no country has objected to these rules, Swiss NNN’s notwithstanding. Irish and other meat factories wishing to export to the US have been subject to USDA inspections for decades. Maybe it’s time to organize a boycott of something.

[Baron von Biffo]

If there is a case that countries are concerned there should be non disclosure agreements signed as a minimum by the US to ensure that there is not going to be any leaking and any sort of industrial espionage.

Fluffy that must have been one hell of a birthday party you had. A country that wont even allow its troops face independent trials for war crimes will hardly hand over industrial thieves to legitimate sanction.

[fluffybiscuits]

Fluffy that must have been one hell of a birthday party you had. A country that wont even allow its troops face independent trials for war crimes will hardly hand over industrial thieves to legitimate sanction.

Call it a deterrent

[morticia]

If you are one of the world's largest food markets you can get away with waving a big stick in a threatening manner, sadly. Especially if democracy at home is universally supportive.

[fluffybiscuits]

If you are one of the world's largest food markets you can get away with waving a big stick in a threatening manner, sadly. Especially if democracy at home is universally supportive.

America bullying its way around the world, whats new...