US Food Safety Enhancement Act HR 2749 is Dead

Yesterday the US Food Safety Enhancement Act HR 2749 failed in the US House of Representatives by a vote of 280 for, 150 against and 3 abstentions. It would have needed a two-thirds majority to pass, so it's effectively dead.

At first glance, the proposed legislation hardly seems threatening. It would have required more frequent inspection of food facilities, created an annual $500 fee to be paid by food producers to the US FDA, and given the FDA more authority to order food recalls and penalize violators.

However, the bill had engendered lots of resistance from people who support small, local food businesses, inspiring such vituperative epithets as "The Gestapo Food Act". Many people feared that HR 2749 would benefit large-scale agri-businesses like Monsanto to the detriment of small farmers. But democracy has spoken, and it ain't gonna happen.