49 



Mr. POMEROY. Good. So I can tell farmers contacting my office 

 that they should recontact their adjuster in light of your com- 

 ments? 



Mr. Witt. Yes. I think as soon as they know what they want to 

 do with the crop and it has reached a point where we can make 

 an accurate determination, we will be happy to appraise it and re- 

 lease it for them. 



Mr. PoMEROY. Will your determination contemplate whether or 

 not they can realistically get that crop off? 



Mr. Witt. That is taken into consideration when they do the ap- 

 praisal. 



Mr. Johnson. I want to thank this panel for your attendance 

 and contribution to the discussion here today. 



Before calling the second panel, if it would be at all possible for 

 Ms. Martinez and Mr. Shipman to remain in the room so that 

 when we go onto Mr. Wessel, who is with the Food and Drug Ad- 

 ministration, that there may be some joint concerns of some mem- 

 bers; and it might be helpful if the two of you, if you possibly could 

 remain. 



But Mr. Weber and Mr. Witt, we very much appreciate your con- 

 tribution today. 



The second witness is Mr. John Wessel, who is the Director of 

 the Contaminants Policy Coordination Office of the Food and Drug 

 Administration of Rockville, Maryland. 



And, Mr. Wessel, we appreciate your attendance with us today. 

 And if you could introduce your associates as well for the record. 



Mr. Wessel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Philip Derfler of our 

 Office of General Counsel; Dr. Terry Troxell, who is from our Cen- 

 ter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition; and Dr. Daniel 

 McChesney from our Center for Veterinary Medicine. I think I 

 have covered everyone. 



Mr. Johnson. Thank you, Mr. Wessel. 



And as with the first panel, you should feel free to summarize 

 any statement that you have, and your full written statement is ac- 

 cepted into the record of the subcommittee. But we would ask you 

 to proceed in whichever manner you are comfortable. 



And you may proceed, Mr. Wessel. 



STATEMENT OF JOHN WESSEL, DIRECTOR, CONTAMINANTS 

 POLICY COORDINATION, OFFICE OF REGULATORY AFFAIRS, 

 FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, PUBLIC HEALTH SERV- 

 ICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, 

 ACCOMPANIED BY TERRY TROXELL, DIRECTOR, DIVISION 

 OF PROGRAMS AND ENFORCEMENT POLICY, OFFICE OF 

 PLANT AND DAIRY FOODS AND BEVERAGES; DANIEL G. 

 McCHESNEY, ACTING CHIEF, ANIMAL FEED SAFETY 

 BRANCH, OFFICE OF SURVEILLANCE AND COMPLIANCE, 

 CENTER FOR VETERINARY MEDICINE; AND PHILIP S. 

 DERFLER, ASSOCIATE CHIEF COUNSEL FOR FOODS, OFFICE 

 OF GENERAL COUNSEL 



Mr. Wessel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



The mycotoxins that I will discuss today are vomitoxin and 

 aflatoxin. Both of these substances are toxic. Both may be affected 

 by adverse climatic conditions, and both are known to be contami- 



