Statement of Meghan Purvis, Environmental Health Advocate U.S. PIRG
Instead
of protecting public health, the U.S. House of Representatives catered
to powerful corporate interests today by passing H.R. 4167, the
National Uniformity for Food Act.
This bill undercuts critical state food safety and right-to-know requirements.
It deprives states of the right to protect their citizens while
assigning responsibility for food safety to an increasingly
unresponsive and under-funded federal bureaucracy.
The
federal government has not done enough to fully inform and protect
consumers on any number of food safety issues. State and local
governments have stepped up to fill this gap by passing effective food
safety laws covering everything from eggs to shellfish to citrus juice.
The food industry has reacted by asking its allies in Congress to put
the kibosh on any state that dares to do more than the federal
government has.
Across
the country, this bill will preempt more than 200 state laws that
protect consumers. Moreover, this bill would forever tie the states’
hands on a range of emerging food safety issues, asking us to trust
that the federal government will do the right thing and address
potential public health concerns.
This
wrongheaded bill also would nullify California’s Proposition 65,
approved by voters in 1986 to require warnings for products containing
chemicals known to cause cancer or birth defects. Consumers have the
right to know if their food contains dangerous chemicals. In the
absence of strong federal standards, states and localities have the
right to provide this information.
When it comes to the safety of America’s food supply, consumers deserve better than uniformly low standards. This cynical piece of legislation should go no farther.
We
applaud the leadership of Representative Waxman (CA) for his work to
protect the rights of states to set more stringent food safety laws.
