Background on the FDA Food Safety Modernization ActDuring the summer of 2012, more than half a billion eggs were recalled in the United States. These salmonella-contaminated eggs sickened more than 1,000 people across the country (Jalonick, 2010). This outbreak served as a “wake-up call” about the need to empower the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to enforce stricter regulations on the food and pharmaceutical industry. Due to the outbreak and the need for stricter regulations, the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) (S. 510 and H.R. 2751) was proposed and signed into law by President Obama on January 4, 2011. The Food Safety Modernization Act aims to ensure America's food supply is safe by redirecting federal regulators' efforts from response to contamination to prevention. The law has four main elements. The first element calls for new FDA controls on imported foods and six hundred inspections of foreign facilities (Levitt, 2011). The number of inspections is proposed to double each year for five years. Under the Food Safety Modernization Act, new fees will be imposed on food businesses. Food businesses will need to hold export certificates. Other costs will be associated with the importation of food products (Levitt, 2011). However, the new law will allow a fast track for imports for companies that undergo further inspection and participate in the Qualified Importer Program. Overall, the law will give the FDA more enforcement powers (Levitt, 2011). The power will come in the form of increased inspections of domestic and foreign facilities and mandatory recalls if the FDA suspects a food, drug or beverage may be contaminated. Finally, under the new law, ...... middle of paper ...... more than half a billion nationwide. HuffingtonPost. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/21/egg-recall-expands-to-mor_n_690019.html(7)Layton, L. (December 19, 2010). The food security measure passed the Senate by surprise on Sunday. Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/19/AR2010121904032.html(8)Layton, L. (2009, July 31). House approves food security bill; the law would expand the FDA's power. Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/30/AR2009073003271.html?hpid=topnews(9)Levitt, J. (2011, March 21). FDA Food Safety Modernization Act. . Retrieved from http://www.sfa.org/public_documents/Food_Safety_Presentation.pdf(10)Shiner, M. (December 12, 2010). Senate approves food safety measure. Policy. Retrieved from http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46598.html