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Non-human animal species divide their time into three major activities: obtaining food, reproducing and defending their territory. Anything that affects one or more of these activities can threaten individual and species survival. Vigilance thwarts
food bioterrorismSimilarly, human survival is potentially threatened by anything that affects our territory, our ability to reproduce or nurture our offspring, and the quantity and quality of our food supply. For this reason, humans are naturally careful about what they eat.
Pathologic microorganisms can invade food and cause serious illness and even death. Once food microbes establish their territory, humans must be observant or pay a serious price.
Just as microbes affect innocent people, so does the threat of food bioterrorism. The danger is not new. For some time, prevention of food-product tampering by humans or by microbe invasion has been a major national concern. And after the events of Sept. 11, our collective awareness of the risks, especially from human bioterrorism, increased severalfold.
One potentially positive spinoff has been increased surveillance of the nation's food supply. The woefully underfunded Food and Drug Administration has asked Congress for increased resources to hire additional inspectors and technical analysts.
Similarly, increased funding has been requested for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the government agency responsible for the safety of meat and poultry.
In cooperation with the new Office of Homeland Security, the FDA and USDA are working with the Centers for Disease Control and the U.S. Customs Office to create a safety net to protect against food-related bioterrorism.
The FDA has developed a process called Operational Risk Management, designed to safeguard the food supply at several points -- all the way "from the farm to the fork," as they put it.
The program goes well beyond the risk presented by terrorists and also considers risks from criminals, protesters, subversives and disgruntled insiders, such as employees.
It provides guidance for food producers, processors, importers, transporters and retailers. In addition to the obvious ethical and social incentives, the food industry at all levels has great financial incentive to minimize the risk of food tampering or terrorism. A detailed description of the program for various food businesses is available at the Food Distributors International Web site, www.fdi.org (click on "Food Safety & Security").
An effective food security safety net requires consumer awareness, too. But what can you do? The FDA recommends the usual precautions, such as not consuming any product with packaging that shows signs of tampering, damage, or having been opened prior to purchase.
Also, do not eat any food item that has an abnormal odor, taste or appearance. If any food item appears to have been tampered with, report it to the appropriate authorities.
If the suspected food product contains meat or poultry, call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline, (800) 535-4555. For other foods, dietary supplements, drugs or cosmetics, notify the FDA 24-hour emergency number at (301) 443-1240, or call the consumer complaint coordinator at (510) 337-6741.
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Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a food and nutrition consultant
and owner of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.
She is also responsible for the nutritional analyses
indicated by an asterisk in this section.Alan Titchenal, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a sports nutritionist in the
Department of Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Science,
University of Hawaii-Manoa.