FDA’s oversight of inspections of state food facilities are inadequate

By 16. December 2011Blog

A report published by the Department of Health and Human Sciences has found inadequacies in the FDA’s oversight of inspections of state food facilities. The review was requested by the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies following the 2009 salmonella outbreak that led to the largest food recall in American history.

The peanut processing plant responsible had been inspected multiple times on behalf of the FDA.

The report found that:

“FDA has increasingly relied on States to inspect food facilities.

In eight States, FDA failed to ensure that the required number of inspections was completed; FDA paid for many inspections that were incomplete.

FDA did not ensure that all State inspections were properly classified and that all violations were remedied.

FDA failed to complete the required number of audits for one-third of the States and did not always follow up on systemic problems identified.”

The full report is available from the Office of Inspector General website.