Food and Drug Safety Legislation

Major Federal Food and Drug Laws

In the United States, food and drug safety is regulated through a variety of federal, state, and local laws and government organizations. This complex web of enforcement agencies and regulations works to cover all aspects of food and drug safety, from drug approvals to food labeling to restaurant sanitation. With regard to food safety, continual monitoring is provided by food inspectors, microbiologists, epidemiologists, and other food scientists working for city and county health departments, state public health agencies, and various federal departments and agencies. Some monitor only one kind of food, such as milk or seafood. Others work within a specified geographic area. Others are responsible for only one type of food establishment, such as restaurants or meatpacking plants. The Clinton administration's Food Safety Initiative of 1997 was created to strengthen the efforts of all the members of the food safety team.

The primary federal law covering food and drug safety is the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938. This law, which has been amended multiple times over the years, requires safety and effectiveness testing of new drugs for humans and animals, prohibits adulteration of food products, requires labeling of food products, and monitors devices that emit radiation such as microwave ovens and medical equipment. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for enforcement of this law. The FDA is charged with protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is responsible specifically for the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products and serves to uphold the Federal Meat Inspection Act, Poultry Products Inspection Act, and Egg Products Inspection Act.

All states have laws that regulate some aspects of food and/or drug safety. Most state laws model the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and adopt the food safety standards found in the Code of Federal Regulations. The states serve as important first responders to inspect, monitor, and detect problems in food safety. A Government Accounting Office (GAO) report in 2001 indicated that state programs provided more than $300 million in resources to food safety programs in 1999. These resources accounted for almost 2 million food safety inspections, of which 44% were at the processor level. The FDA's budget for field activities provided $145 million in resources that same year. These numbers show the valuable contributions made by both the federal and state governments, just in the area of food inspections and field activities.

Some of the agencies involved in food safety include the FDA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Services, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, U.S. Customs Service, U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, and state and local governments.

History of Food and Drug Legislation in the United States

The United States was slow to recognize the need for a national food and drug law. Great Britain's first national food law was passed in 1860, while the first food and drug law was passed in the United States in 1906.

...