The Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to launch the biggest overhaul of the nation’s food safety laws since the 1930s. The bill passed 73 to 25 and would give new authority to the Food and Drug Administration and — for the first time – sets safety standards for imported foods.
The law would place new responsibilities on agri-business to prevent food contamination, like those which responsible for recent egg and spinach episodes.
Small and local farms may be exempt from the final bill’s provisions.
President Obama is optimistic the House will pass a similar bill.
(READ a report in the Washington Post)