Senator Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee is convinced that a national framework for food safety of fresh produce is needed. Currently oversight is a piece-meal combination of state and federal regulations, and according to Harkin, the Food and Drug Administration lacks the resources and authority to ensure the safety of the U.S. Food Supply.
Harkin has introduced the Fresh Produce Safety Act of 2007, which would make voluntary FDA guidelines mandatory and more frequent inspections of fresh produce operations.