Finally.... Safe at Home, Baby

      It's been a while, but between some vacation time, the Thanksgiving holidays and a very slow food news cycle, I've managed to skip the whole month of November. But that doesn't mean the U.S.D.A. and the FDA haven't been getting things done. After being, in my opinion, very slow to get out of the starting gate concerning the Chinese dairy industry's inability to handle its' melamine problem, both U.S. agencies moved very quickly during November to protect our food supply, especially in the area of baby foods and formula. Over some rather lukewarm protests by the Chinese authorities, we have established satellite offices in the far east to monitor Chinese dairy-based exports, and have significantly increased the testing requirements for them at their U.S. ports of entry. Additionally, the big three U.S. baby food/formula manufacturers' products have been recently tested for eviidence of melamine contamination, and while some trace amounts of melamine have been found, the level was so insignificant so as to pose no health threat to our smallest consumers. It may have taken longer than necessary, but the USDA and the FDA got it right. We can now rest easy knowing our kids are protected from these Chinese miscues, but we must not backslide, but remain vigilant..