Georgia Moves Closer to Adopting Food Safety Changes

ATLANTA – After Georgia-made peanut products were named as the culprit in a nationwide salmonella outbreak, state lawmakers have moved quickly on a bill to make Georgia the first to require food makers to swiftly alert state inspectors if their internal tests show their products are tainted.

The proposed food safety regulations, which would require the food processors to report the results within 24 hours, have moved rapidly through the Georgia Legislature in the wake of the outbreak that originated in a south Georgia peanut processing plant.

The House unanimously passed the changes Wednesday, weeks after the Senate adopted a similar proposal. The chambers will now hash out minor differences and plan to send a final version soon to Gov. Sonny Perdue.

Federal officials, food scientists, legal experts and industry groups cannot point to another state with similar requirements. And Georgia lawmakers say the new provision would make it the first state to have such a rule.

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Source: Yahoo News