USDA pledged that the program would add to the protections consumers enjoyed under the old system, not subtract from them by limiting the authority of government meat inspectors. Under the pretense of modern science, meat inspectors are now generally prohibited from examining the entire meat processing line to prevent fecal matter, rotten meat or other objectionable contamination from reaching consumers. The agency could have maintained continuous inspection, while adding microbial testing and other science-based tools, thus increasing needed protections. Instead, the USDA has betrayed consumer trust by facilitating the partial dismantling of the meat inspection system. Today, chemical washes like chlorine and tri-sodium phosphate are being used to sanitize filth.
Irradiation is seen as the silver bullet for the future.
When good sanitation practices are replaced with technical interventions like irradiation, the quality of meat is greatly reduced. This brings us back to the subject of irradiation, which is being promoted to solve problems, rather than slowing slaughter lines and changing feeding regimes, which would address the root cause of food-borne illness. I would like now to turn to the many myths surrounding irradiation. Myths that are being foisted on the public by industry and government representatives. The FDA has never determined the level of radiation to which any specific food item can be exposed and still is safe for human consumption.