An editorial in The New York Times says it is time for a single agency to be responsible for the safety of the nation's food supply.
The paper argues that 15 separate agencies have been identified by the United States Government Accountability Office of responsibility in varying degrees for carrying out the task of protecting the food Americans eat.
The Times calls the role of the various agencies a "historical accident," which has led to decreased effectiveness and efficiency in an area where neither can be afforded.
Legislation such as the Safe Food Act of 2005 and others, posits the paper, have never made it to a floor vote as such measures have always been held up in committee.
Robert Brackett, director of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said food poisoning cases related to fresh produce are increasing, according to an Associated Press report.
The agency, he said, "considering all of the regulatory options that we would need" to deal with issue.
Groups such as the National Academy of Sciences have recommended an integrated food safety body to deal more effectively with food supply and safety issues. The General Accounting Office (GAO) has studied the issue and found efficiencies have been gained in other countries where government food agency consolidation has taken place.
Richard Raymond, the Agriculture Department undersecretary for food safety, is on the record as opposing a single agency approach to the issue.
"The USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) and the FDA have a long history of working together very well, and I think it's been improved even in recent years," he said.
Discussion Questions: Would a single agency responsible for food safety be more effective handling the task than the multi-agency approach currently used? Would the potential disruption of shifting responsibilities be too dangerous?