A succession of these, beginning with the cranberry recall of 1959, has greatly affected the Agency's work as well as its public image. Those who read the papers or watch TV know FDA in terms of such topics as cyclamate in soft drinks, the food color Red No. 2, saccharin, nitrite, and caffeine. Chemicals and cancer are the great public health concerns of today. Much more is known about such matters than just 20 years ago, yet uncertainty about the risk of borderline carcinogens continues to hamper decisions. Fortunately, the regular business of consumer protection goes on as usual.
Consumer protection happens because so many people do things the right way.
See also The Long Struggle for the 1906 Law .