http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/taste/stories/031308dnlivspinach..1e86209.htmlPackaged fresh-spinach producers failed inspections
03:27 PM CDT on Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Bloomberg News
U.S. regulators found "objectionable conditions" in almost half of their inspections of packaged fresh-spinach producers and took no "meaningful enforcement action," a congressional report says.
The Food and Drug Administration listed poor sanitation and other deficiencies in 47 percent of 199 inspections from January 2001 to February 2007, according to a report today by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. None of the cases was referred to the FDA's enforcement arm for further action.
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In 38 cases, the FDA found repeated violations at facilities that produce fresh packaged spinach and didn't force corrective actions, according to the report. The FDA instead requested voluntary compliance.
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In eight cases reviewed by the committee, the spinach producers refused to allow FDA inspectors access to records or other information, preventing a "full review of the food safety practices," according to the report. Natural Selection declined to prove written procedures for recalls during inspections in 2001 and 2002, the report said. FDA doesn't have the legal power to force companies to provide records.
The scope of FDA inspections isn't wide enough to detect sources of contamination, according to the report. The FDA doesn't routinely inspect fields that may contribute to contamination.
Even in cases in which the agency was "presented with information indicating the presence of possible contamination, FDA neglected to collect product samples," according to the report.
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