How Safe Is America's Food Supply?

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Recent health scares have involved food imported from Mexico, India and China, but the latest recall involves meat products from Georgia. Wherever it comes from, how safe is the food supply? Do US agencies have the resources they need to protect consumers? Also, a House committee has voted to subpoena two of the President's most trusted aides and, on Reporter's Notebook, Libya will be rewarded for releasing Bulgarian medics held for eight years. Did the European Union give in to blackmail?

Photo: David Paul Morris/Getty Images

Making News

Committee Issues Contempt Citations against Presidential Aides ()

The White House and Congress are closer than ever to a Constitutional showdown after the House Judiciary Committee has voted to subpoena two of the President's most trusted aide. Press Secretary Tony Snow called the action against Chief-of-Staff Josh Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers "pathetic." Dan Eggen covers the Justice Department for the Washington Post.

Guests:

Dan Eggen: Justice Department Reporter for the Washington Post

Main Topic

How Safe Is America's Food Supply? ()

Recent reports of chemical and biological contamination have raised troubling questions about food safety in the globalized economy. America imports four times as much food as it did ten years ago, but a reduced staff of inspectors can look at just one-percent of nine million shipments from overseas. Food shipped from Mexico, India and China has been tainted with illegal fertilizers, pesticides, antibiotics and industrial chemicals, and the Bush White House has formed a working group on imported food. But just this week, meat products from Georgia were recalled because of an "urgent health threat" from deadly botulism, and E-coli bacteria were found on California produce just last year. Wherever it comes from, how safe is America's food? How do consumers know what to buy?

Guests:

Marion Nestle: Professor of Food Studies at New York University
Joe Pezzini: Vice President of Operations for Ocean Mist Farms
Joseph Mendelson: Legal Director of the Center for Food Safety
Drew Thompson: Director of China Studies at the Nixon Center

Reporter's Notebook

Sarkozy in Libya Following Release of Medics ()

Yesterday, Libya released six medical workers held for eight years on charges of infecting children with AIDS; the five Bulgarians nurses and a Palestinian doctor were extradited to Bulgaria. In return, the European Union agreed to a package of financial and medical aid for Libya as well as improved diplomatic relations. Bulgaria's President insists it was not a ransom payment for blackmail. French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was instrumental in negotiating the release, today traveled to Tripoli to cement the deal with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Philip Golub is a contributing editor to Le Monde diplomatique.

Guests:

Philip Golub: Contributing Editor to Le Monde diplomatique

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