I was honored to give this year’s Keynote Address at the BRC’s Annual Food Safety Americas Conference in Tampa. The topic of my speech this year was the FDA’s use of criminal charges and penalties against food industry executives, QA managers and food safety employees. The message to industry … the Food Police are coming.
With the passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), preparing for your next FDA inspection may seem a bit daunting. FDA is working aggressively to overhaul the safety of the nation’s food supply, and is now enforcing its new rules during routine inspections.
As a food safety lawyer, I have always been, and remain, extremely interested in the increases in the numbers of foodborne illness outbreaks and food product recalls seen over the last decade.
When Congress passed the Food Safety Modernization Act (“FSMA”), it provided the framework to give FDA expansive new powers. Although FDA is still working on finalizing the rules under FSMA, the agency has become increasingly aggressive in its interaction with industry.