News Room

Food Retailers and Wholesalers Applaud New USDA Safeguards Against Mad Cow Disease

December 30, 2003
WASHINGTON, DC — December 30, 2003 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) “has fortified the firewalls protecting the public against exposure to meat from cattle with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease,” said Tim Hammonds, president and CEO of the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), commenting on new BSE safeguards announced today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

“The USDA, acting together with the Food and Drug Administration, has adopted or even strengthened the high-priority recommendations we have made for improving our nation's BSE firewalls,” Hammonds said. He cited, in particular, the ban on downer cows and withholding animals being tested for BSE from the human food chain until those tests prove to be negative. (FMI’s recommendations are detailed in “Strengthening BSE Policy in the United States,” released in July 2003 and updated this December. They are available at www.fmi.org.)

Hammonds added, “We believe the new international scientific review panel will address any remaining issues in an appropriate manner.

“This quick and effective action should be a great comfort to our consumers and our trading partners.”

Food Marketing Institute proudly advocates on behalf of the food retail industry. FMI’s U.S. members operate nearly 40,000 retail food stores and 25,000 pharmacies, representing a combined annual sales volume of almost $770 billion. Through programs in public affairs, food safety, research, education and industry relations, FMI offers resources and provides valuable benefits to more than 1,225 food retail and wholesale member companies in the United States and around the world. FMI membership covers the spectrum of diverse venues where food is sold, including single owner grocery stores, large multi-store supermarket chains and mixed retail stores. For more information, visit www.fmi.org and for information regarding the FMI foundation, visit www.fmifoundation.org

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