9 



STATEMENT OF NANCY FOSTER, ACTING ASSISTANT ADMINIS- 

 TRATOR FOR FISHERIES, NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERV- 

 ICE, NOAA, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 



Dr. Foster. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Sub- 

 committee. My name is Nancy Foster, and I am the Acting Assist- 

 ant Administrator for Fisheries in NOAA. I am pleased to be here 

 this afternoon to give you NOAA's views on seafood safety and to 

 tell you a little bit about the programs that we have in this area. I 

 am sure everyone is aware that there is continuing pressure both 

 on Congress and on the Federal regulatory agencies to improve the 

 current system of seafood inspection and seafood safety programs. 



Those folks who are our critics will say that the current pro- 

 grams aren't as effective as they could be in addressing hazards as- 

 sociated with seafood consumption. However, I think it is impor- 

 tant to note that NOAA is in agreement with the conclusions of 

 the National Academy of Sciences report on seafood safety, when 

 they said that most seafood available to the U.S. public is whole- 

 some and unlikely to cause illness. 



The National Academy of Sciences study also endorsed incorpo- 

 rating HACCP principles into any system that we use to control 

 safety risks. We think this is important because we believe that 

 HACCP offers industry and the government a seafood protection 

 program that is based on sound and modern technology, and a pro- 

 gram that can supply consumers with safe, wholesome, and proper- 

 ly-labeled fishery products that they have a right to expect both 

 from their government and from the industry. 



We find that one of the strong selling points of the HACCP-based 

 system is that it allows the industry to use the knowledge and ex- 

 perience that it has acquired to help design and to implement a 

 system for controlling risks. We in NOAA are in the business of 

 seafood safety because of our legislative mandates for the conserva- 

 tion, management, and wise use of living marine resources, and for 

 a requirement to provide assistance to the seafood industry. We be- 

 lieve that these mandates encompass a concern that seafood provid- 

 ed by the industry that we regulate can be safely used for human 

 consumption. 



We fulfill our responsibilities through an inspection program, a 

 research program, technology transfer, and finally through fishery 

 management efforts. We get our authority from several laws not 

 the least of which is the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Man- 

 agement Act of 1976. Now, within our Seafood Quality and Safety 

 Program, we carry out, as you heard before, a voluntary fee-for- 

 service seafood inspection program, but in addition to this we also 

 carry out our product quality and safety research program aimed 

 at both environmentally and process-induced hazards. 



In fiscal year 1993 our research program was funded at just over 

 $14 million, and I think it is significant that this $14 million fund- 

 ing level is included in the President's 1994 budget request. In ad- 

 dition to the $14 million the seafood industry in 1992 paid $12 mil- 

 lion, which is the fees that they paid us to cover the costs of our 

 direct inspection services. I would also note that as a part of our 

 voluntary inspection system we began in 1992 to implement a 

 HACCP-based program. We now have completed arrangements 



