Johnny Isakson is a co-sponsor of S510 - This is his response to our letter of concern

Disappointing response from Senator Johnny Isakson - Georgia Senator - regarding S510 Food Safety Bill:

Thank you for contacting me regarding food safety legislation.  I appreciate your comments and concerns and am glad to have the opportunity to respond.  In this global economy, food ingredients originate from a number of possible sources, are sold at competitive prices, and are introduced into our nation's food supply. This may drive down food prices, but it also exposes our nation's food supply to possible contamination by a source that is not easily identified. We are all well aware of the recent outbreaks of food-borne illness and nationwide recalls of contaminated food from both domestic and foreign sources.  I understand your concern regarding an unnecessary expansion of government and there are a number of bills in the House regarding this issue that I am concerned about and am currently monitoring.  I believe there is critical need to protect our nation's food sources from wide-spread contamination and outbreaks without compromising our nation's farmer and food processors.   I am a cosponsor of S.510, the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009.  This bipartisan legislation will help ensure the safety of our nation's food supply by improving the Food and Drug Administration's capabilities to oversee food inspection. Specifically, S.510 will enable the FDA toestablish preventive plans in food-processing facilities that identify and prevent potential hazards from occurring.  Furthermore, this bill will give the FDA the ability to issue mandatory recalls on food products, increase capacity to detect and respond to food-borne illness outbreaks, and establish a pilot-program testing food traceability measures.  S.510 was last placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar for debate.  Please rest assured that I will keep your thoughts and concerns in mind regarding food safety as we go forward in the legislative process.   Thank you again for contacting me.  Please visit my webpage at http://isakson.senate.gov/ for more information on the issues important to you and to sign up for my e-newsletter. Sincerely, Johnny Isakson United States Senator For future correspondence with my office, please visit my web site at http://isakson.senate.gov/contact.cfm.  You can also click here to sign up for the eNewsletter