News of Al Qaeda Plot to Poison Food Supplies Comes on Heels of New Food Safety Regulations

U.S. officials reported earlier this week that the terrorist group al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula had considered poisoning salad bars, buffets and even commercial packaged food with ricin and cyanide. Officials caution that the information was several months old and no indication of a viable plot to poison American food supplies was found.

Homeland Security has contemplated a possible terrorist food poisoning for years. With the centralization and globalization of food supply, a small amount of poison at the source can do a large amount of damage nation wide.

The news of the food poisoning threats from al Qaeda come on the heels of new food safety regulations that were signed into law yesterday by President Obama. The new food safety regulations give the Food and Drug Administration sweeping powers to initiate food recalls in the wake of safety concerns. Called the Food Safety Modernization Act, the regulations will also require all food producers to ensure the safety of their ingredients, regardless of where in the world they come from.

The main purpose of the new legislation is to prevent accidental food contamination issues such as the ones that have occurred in recent months with eggs, beef and produce. The rules would allow the FDA to immediately shut down operations and to trace the source of the contamination.

However, the new food safety legislation also allows federal regulators to keep a closer eye on the sources of food ingredients that originate from destinations outside of the United States. American-based producers will also have to show the FDA a food safety contingency plan to show that they have the resources to be able to prevent or shut down food safety issues. Companies will have to have this plan on hand to show regulators if requested.

One of the most contentious provisions of the bill was worked out before ratification. Many small food producers and their advocates were concerned about the regulatory and administrative burden placed on them by the new rules. The concern was that it would effectively shut down small food producers- a cornerstone of the growing locavorism movement. The final version of the bill exempts producers who sell within a 275 mile radius of the production facilities and sell mainly to consumers.