Blog Entry #1: Is America's Food Supply Safe?

            In the passage, “Is America’s Food Supply Safe” by Dr. David Acheson, he explains how the Food and Drug Administration takes numerous measures to keep the food that America consumes safe. Acheson illustrates the precautions by explaining certain ways that are taken to assure that that food is safe to eat, like using scientific methods to illustrate the cause of contamination and how to stop it from growing. Another thing that he states in the passage is how there are investigators all over the country who are ready to hunt and prevent contamination in America’s food. Dr. David Acheson’s idea in the passage is that even though there might be questionable people who challenge the F.D.A.(Food and Drug Administration), They’re taking every step to ensure that America’s food is harmless and limit the questions about the recent outbreaks.
            One reason why the F.D.A. takes this approach is due to the fact that they want to avoid an uncontrollable outbreak. If the F.D.A. mistakenly overlooked an outbreak, then issues would arise eventually leading to fatalities if they don’t treat it. For example, a few years ago there was an outbreak in spinach. The spinach had an strand of E.coli, which made many Americans sick and some even died. This outbreak was due to the contamination of the manure that was mixed in with the dirt where the spinach was growing. After the outbreak, the F.D.A. took even more steps to guarantee that the food was safe, such as commit to more checkups in the food manufacturers and visited the farms and slaughterhouses to make sure that quality control and safety was administered.
            Another reason the F.D.A. takes these approaches is so they can illustrate and inform the situations that can happen if food isn’t handled properly and to inform people about the precautions that are being taken into account while keeping the food safe. The F.D.A. always evaluates everything from food to drugs, like medicines and vitamins. They always label or stamp a food product that hasn’t been evaluated to warn customers that the F.D.A hasn’t tested that specific product. The F.D.A. also puts guidelines on food and drugs to assist in the safety and proper handling so that consumers would avoid any illnesses or potential outbreaks. For example, when I walk into the store and shop for food, I always look for the handling guidelines on certain products because it illustrates that the F.D.A. has checked the product and made sure that the product for quality control and that it’s safe to eat as long as the instructions and guidelines are followed.
            In conclusion, the F.D.A. ensures safety by adding more workers to numerous places and by informing the people on how to make sure that we don’t fall victim to illnesses or outbreaks. The passage clearly informs people about the steps the F.D.A. takes to prevent any harm in America. As Dr. David Acheson stated in the passage, “The F.D.A. works hard every day to ensure the safety of America’s food.”