Schumer: FDA Too Slow To Issue Recalls For Tainted Food Products
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday that federal regulators are too slow getting bad food off the shelves.
As WCBS 880's Stephanie Colombini reported, Schumer's push for change followed a report from the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The report said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration waited far too long to issue mandatory food recalls numerous times in recent years.
"And so these potentially tainted food could remain on the shelves months after alarm bells rang that they were bad for you," Schumer said.
Schumer noted that a 21-state E. coli outbreak linked to tainted flour began in December, but the recall wasn't issued until May.
According to the FDA, at least 57 products have been recalled since May 31 due to listeria, salmonella and other bacteria.
Schumer called on the FDA to change its policy to implement mandatory recalls sooner.
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