There seems to be a lethargy over MRSA at the CDC. They underestimate and underplay
Earlier this year, Schneider reports, a Canadian researcher found MRSA in “10 percent of 212 samples of pork chops and ground pork bought in four Canadian provinces.” The Canadian pork industry, which exports some 762 million pounds of pork into the U.S. annually, has also embraced the concentrated-animal feedlot operation (CAFO) model, with its heavy reliance on antibiotics.
The Canadian researcher even delivered his findings at a Center for Disease Control confab. The response from U.S. authorities? Awkward silence. The USDA, which is responsible for the safety of imported food, doesn’t test for MRSA, Schneider reports.
The FDA, responsible for monitoring the safety of U.S.-grown foods, might have been expected to start testing our homegrown pork in light of the Canadian findings. But it didn’t, according to Schneider.
