A Subject That Affects Everybody

USING SCIENCE TO AVOID CHAOS IN THE FOOD SAFETY REALM



Address by THOMAS J. BILLY, Administrator of the Food Safety and Inspection Service and Chairman, Codex Alimentarius Commission,



Delivered to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Washington, DC., November 15, 1999



It§s a pleasure to be here today to participate in your conference on the Future of Food. As we approach the new millenium, it is important for those of us involved in providing the public with an abundant, safe, and nutritious food supply to explore the critical issues that face us and to develop a strategy that will work for the future.



I appear before you today wearing two hats. First, as Administrator of the Food Safety and Inspection Service, I have the responsibility for the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products produced in the United States. This includes setting standards for the safety of these foods, inspecting products according to these standards, and responding to outbreaks of foodborne illness attributed to these products.





THOMAS J. BILLY