Gillibrand Unveils Comprehensive Food Safety Improvement Plan

Contaminated Food Kills 5,700 Americans Each Year – Nation’s Food Safety Laws Have Not Been Overhauled In A Century

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the first New York senator to sit on the Senate Agriculture Committee in nearly 40 years, announced a comprehensive plan to overhaul the nation's food safety laws by improving inspection, recall response, and public education. A cornerstone of Senator Gillibrand's plan is new legislation to mandate E. coli inspections of ground beef.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), every year an estimated 87 million Americans are sickened by contaminated food, 371,000 are hospitalized with food-borne illness, and 5,700 die from food-related disease. While the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has made some progress improving food safety regulations, the nation's food safety laws have not been significantly overhauled in more than a century, according to the Congressional Research Service.

"In America, in 2009, it is unconscionable that food is still going straight to our kitchens, school cafeterias and restaurants without being properly tested to ensure its safety," Senator Gillibrand said. "It's spreading too many diseases and costing too many lives. We need to do a better job of catching contaminated food before it ever comes close to a kitchen table. My plan addresses the gaps in the inspection process and improves recalls and public education, so parents have access to the information to keep their families safe."

Across New York State, approximately 5 million people are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year.

READ Senator Gillibrand's new report on food safety.
Report at: http://gillibrand.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Food%20Safety%20Report.pdf

• In New York City, an estimate of nearly 2.1 million are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In Western New York, an estimate of nearly 360,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In the Rochester-Finger Lakes Region, an estimate of over 310,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In Central New York, an estimate of over 250,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In the Southern Tier, an estimate of nearly 170,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In the Capital Region, an estimate of over 280,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In the North Country, an estimate of nearly 125,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• In the Hudson Valley, an estimate of an estimate of over 570,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year;
• On Long Island, an estimate of over 715,000 are afflicted with a food-borne illness each year.

Source: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
October 14, 2009