In the wake of recent US Food and Drug Administration investigations into dog illnesses linked to jerky treats imported from China, Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, USA, is leading a new initiative to reform the way consumers are notified when FDA issues a product advisory.
Currently, FDA's website is the only place where product advisories are listed, which puts those consumers without access to the Internet or computers at risk as they are less likely to receive an online warning. Chambers' proposal asks legislators to create a law whereby any products under FDA advisory must have the warning also posted on store shelves where they are sold.
Other members of congress have also criticized FDA for its investigation of the jerky treats as well, including both Rep. Dennis Kucinich and Sen. Sherrod Brown. After auditing FDA, the Department of Health and Human Services issued the following statement relating to the investigation into the treats:
“FDA has developed procedures for monitoring recalls and assessing a firm’s recall effectiveness. However, FDA did not always follow its procedures in overseeing three of the five recalls that we reviewed. Furthermore, FDA’s procedures were not always adequate for monitoring large recalls. FDA’s lack of authority, coupled with its sometimes lax adherence to its recall guidance and internal procedures and the inadequacy of some of those procedures, limited FDA’s ability to ensure that contaminated petfood was promptly removed from retailers’ shelves.”