WASHINGTON - Some U.S. legislators and farm groups are reacting to the food safety scare by demanding fewer imports, making countries like Canada pay for more inspections and putting labels on all foreign products.
They're also throwing Canada's mad cow cases into the mix in the fierce debate over protecting the American food supply.
With word the toxic chemical melamine that triggered a massive pet food recall has also been used as a feed filler for farmed fish, pigs and chickens, many are now focused on protectionist measures.
At a hearing Wednesday on Capitol Hill, one legislator said the scare from the tainted food additive, exported from China via a U.S. firm and used by Toronto-based pet food company Menu Foods, should "remind people not to rely on foreign sources of food.''
"We really don't know what else is out there and yet we've increased food imports and reduced inspections,'' said Bob Etheridge, a Democratic representative from North Carolina.
And Earl Pomeroy from North Dakota said a country of origin labelling system that hasn't been fully implemented must begin now, despite objections from agriculture officials who say it's unnecessary.
"I think we can do a heck of a lot better than what we've got now,'' he said, adding consumers deserve to know who produced their food.
Senator Byron Dorgan of South Dakota has already introduced a bill that would block imports of older Canadian cows until the labelling is in place.
Officials north of the border have been concerned the pet food scandal could end up side-swiping Canada, which supplied the United States with about US$14 billion worth of food last year.
"This is an ongoing issue that we have anxiety over,'' Trade Minister David Emerson said last week during a visit to Washington.
"We have been caught before on fees and initiatives that weren't fundamentally designed to deal with a Canadian problem.''
Some groups, like the National Family Farm Coalition, are linking the melamine problem that originated in China with Canada's latest mad cow case to argue there are "deep cracks'' in U.S. policy.
"Our public policy must respect the right of every society to food sovereignty and aim to have our food produced on family farms,'' said president George Naylor.
Collin Peterson, who chairs the House of Representatives agriculture committee, wondered Wednesday if trade rules would permit the United States to charge exporting countries for inspections.
"I don't specifically know,'' said David Acheson, who was appointed food safety czar last week and directed last year's investigation into tainted spinach from California.
"Finding a way to pay for this is a key question,'' said Acheson, who has stressed the melamine presents low risks for humans.
John Dingell of Michigan is already gathering support for legislation that would charge other countries to fund more inspections.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Agriculture Department are facing a major challenge, since regulated imports have doubled in the last five years and 60 per cent are food.
There are more than 10 million food entries a year and most are large volume commercial shipments.
That comprises about 15 per cent of the total U.S. food supply and the figure is expected to grow.
China said Wednesday it would crack down on contaminated food products after authorities detained mangers from two companies linked to the contaminated pet food that killed dogs and cats in Canada and the United States.
Melamine is a chemical used in plastics, fertilizers and flame retardants. It was used by the Chinese companies in wheat flour to artificially add protein, U.S. investigators say, and the products were mislabelled to avoid inspection.
