In Alaska, House Bill 202, introduced by Tammie Wilson (R-North Pole) would eliminate most of the state’s food safety regulations and put the responsibility for serving safe food on the consumer.
During the hearing, she said, “We just think that there’s something called responsibility here. I don’t think government is there to keep us safe from absolutely everything, you can’t protect everybody from everything.”
The bill would eliminate safety regulations for seafood, shellfish, poultry, meat, dairy, and any other processed foods.
In the United States at this time, there are only three bacteria, in two different types of foods, that are considered adulterants. One is E. coli 0157:H7 in ground beef, and the second and third are Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods that are not cooked before serving.
Wilson feels that company expenses, such as permits and equipment, are suppressing the development of local food. Instead of regulations, Wilson would have producers give consumers a card saying, “This product has not been inspected by any governmental agency and may be harmful to your health.”
The state’s Environmental Health Director Kristin Ryan testified against the bill. She said,
“People buy food under the assumption that it’s safe to eat. Yes, people should have personal responsibility. But when there’s some clear risk, it’s our responsibility to protect against that risk.”
She also stated that since foodborne illness kills 3,000 people every year in the United States, this isn’t the right time to loosen regulations.
Between the years 2000 and 2008, there were 62 outbreaks of foodborne illness in the state of Alaska, sickening at least 866 people. The outbreaks were caused by Clostridium botulinum, Paralytic shellfish poisoning, Norovirus, E. coli 0157:H7, and various types of Salmonella.
Your list of adulterants is Federal only. Most states/local authorities would consider any pathogen causing foodborne illness contaminated food, or food not fit for human consumption, etc. Food that is obviously contaminated with mold etc, would also fall under a category of adulterated, not fit, etc. State and local laws usually aren’t as limited as the Federal.
But state and local governments don’t have the legal ability to recall foods. The FDA was just given mandatory recall authority in the Food Safety Modernization Act last year.