Speaking yesterday at the Institute of Food Technologists Global Food Safety and Quality conference, Hoffman said that the food industry is becoming an increasingly complex global network of supply chains, and the need to collaborate with public and private trade partners has never been more pressing.

"We have to be able to do this in a way that facilitates trade, protects our trading partners, and reduces the risk to ourselves and our partners, because the food industry is becoming a fully global system," he urged.

Businesses have an increasing array of risk assessment tools that can help, including the new CARVER+Shock system that assesses companies' vulnerabilities. While such programs offer businesses an essential indicator, Hoffman says the government is pushing for a system that's more efficient in making data accessible on a broader scale.

Hoffman noted that a significant action receiving little public notice is the Presidential Executive Order of the Safety of Imports, which prompted interagency review of import safety issues.

"This was an important development," Hoffman said. "It asks agencies ranging from the USDA, FDA and Department of Homeland Security to the Commerce Department and Consumer Safety Product Commission to look at our authority and see what we should be doing to improve import safety."

"We need to ask how we can partner with the private sector and foreign governments reciprocally to improve how we protect each other," Hoffman said.

The recent pet food contamination involving melamine was a tremendous wake-up call regarding potential risks, and dealing outside the regulations of our own borders-especially with a major trading force like China, Hoffman commented.

"This really was an unsophisticated case of some suppliers in China trying to save some money with a new ingredient, but the fallout was significant," Hoffman said.

Imports from China to the U.S. have increased significantly in the past four years, but the U.S. did not maintain that same pace in its preparation for increased risk, Hoffman said.

Specific areas of security that need heightened focus include surveillance and supply chain verification and validation, an effort that Hoffman urges businesses to initiate.

"(Supply chain verification) is something that is just as important as anything the government can do. This action alone may have prevented the whole melamine situation."

related report

International Food Supply a Soft Target for Terrorists Chicago IL (SPX) Aug 07 - When contaminated spinach was pulled from store shelves in 2006, the effects were felt across the table and around the world. Three people died and over 200 others fell sick across 26 states.

Across borders and oceans, the Japanese yen and Europe's euro jittered in relation to the U.S. dollar as costs related to the outbreak of foodborne illness mounted to $74 million.

"The global food supply is interconnected," said Marc Ostfield, senior advisor for bioterrorism, biodefense and health security at the U.S. Department of State. Ostfield addressed the Institute of Food Technologists Global Food Safety and Quality Conference here today.

Ostfield noted challenges of an international, safe food supply, which he called a "soft target for terrorists." In recent meetings with worldwide governments "We've been using food defense as a way to open the door to talk about bioterrorism," he said.

Improving food-supply protection gives all governments "a mandate to move forward," he added.

Ostfeld noted progress in 2004 to mandate food-supply protection among the wealthy G8 nations. In 2005, G8 countries were introduced to the latest U.S. techniques for assessing company's vulnerability to intentional contamination, a system called CARVER + Shock.

Building international dialogue accounts for one goal in counter-bioterrorism efforts, as does involving industry in decisions. "(Industry's) buy-in, leadership and partnership are crucial to hardening the soft targets."

A bigger challenge is balancing trade with food safety concerns. "How does enhanced food defense not interfere with growing economies? How can we make them complementary and not contradictory?" he asked.

Sharing information across borders is high on his list to improve food defense, as is strengthening communication between government, private industry and all sectors of U.S. systems. "How can we engage trade, transportation, environment, industry and agriculture to better achieve cross-border communication?"

International food-defense cooperation efforts are bearing fruit, he said.

"We are starting to see the private sector-at least the very largest multi-national firms-begin to incorporate food defense practices around the globe."

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