We don't need another disaster

The tragic Gulf oil disaster of the past six weeks finally focused Congress' attention on the serious safety problems with offshore drilling.

But why does it take a national disaster? A bill to make our food safer has been sitting in Congress, near final passage, for a year. It would increase inspections and help food processors catch contaminants before they end up on your local grocery store shelves.

Now that we get so much of our food from overseas, these basic safety requirements should apply to all foreign as well as domestic food companies it's just common sense.

Join me in sending an email to the Senate to stop the delay and pass the food safety bill now. Just go to Consumers Union's website, www.NotInMyFood.org, to send your own email. We shouldn't have to wait until any more Americans get sick and die to fix our broken food safety system.

Let's solve this problem before another disaster strikes!