High costs of food safety proposals causing concern

Published 9:53 am Monday, July 8, 2013

AKRON (AP) — Expected costs from proposed federal rules to make the nation’s food system safer are causing concern among some farmers and state agriculture officials.

The proposals are part of the Food Safety Modernization Act approved in 2011, the Akron Beacon Journal reports. The legislation is among changes within the Food and Drug Administration aimed at making the nation’s food system safer by pinpointing where contamination occurs. Officials are still determining how to implement the law, and regulations won’t be finalized for several years. But one northeast Ohio farmer says he will no longer grow vegetables for local tables because the proposed requirements would cost too much.

Don Bessemer, who runs a farm within the city of Akron, says he has closed his Bessemer Farms market that sold to local retailers.

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“We don’t want to quit, we were forced out of the business,” Bessemer said.

Bessemer says he has turned to soybeans because the law doesn’t apply to commodity crops grown for uses like oil. The law focuses mostly on produce like lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, green onions and fruits that are usually eaten raw and often are at the center of nationwide recalls due to contamination.

Farmer Chris Saal says he will continue his Walnut Drive Gardens business in Portage County’s Suffield Township. But he acknowledges that the expected costs are a concern for farmers.

Saal said he already has aggressive safety standards and hopes he won’t have to make many changes.