FDA furlough draws criticism

Safety advocates say furloughing FDA food inspectors has put the nation’s food supply at risk.

WASHINGTON — The furloughing of hundreds of Food and Drug Administration inspectors has sharply reduced inspections of the nation’s food supply — one of many repercussions of the partial government shutdown that make Americans potentially less safe.

The agency, which oversees 80 percent of the food supply, has suspended all routine inspections of domestic food-processing facilities, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said. He said he’s working on a plan to bring back inspectors as early as next week to resume inspections of highrisk facilities, which handle foods such as soft cheese or seafood, or have a history of problems.

“We are doing what we can to mitigate any risk to consumers through the shutdown,” Gottlieb said.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit advocacy group, described the reductions as unacceptable.

“That puts our food supply at risk,” said Sarah Sorscher, deputy director of regulatory affairs at the group. “Regular inspections, which help stop foodborne illness before people get sick, are vital.”

Foodborne illness is a major problem in the country, sickening 48 million people each year and killing 3,000, estimates the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Food inspections are just one of many public health and safety efforts that have been stopped or curtailed during the shutdown, now deep into its third week.

Much of what the federal government does involves risk management: It keeps airplanes from colliding, inspects food and drugs, pursues criminals and defends against possible terrorist and cyberattacks.

“You can’t shut down the United States government at this magnitude and expect that everything’s going to be hunky-dory,” said Bruce McIndoe, founder and president of WorldAware, a risk management firm with corporate clients around the globe.