Tues., July 15 03 -- Efforts Help Industry Move Faster on Food Safety

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Beef safety for consumers took center stage over 10 years ago when an E. coli outbreak in the northwest.  According to Curtis Kastner, director of the Food Science Institute at Kansas State University, the industry explored steam pasteurization immediately following that crisis.  He says the collaborative effort worked well.

Cut #1    :20       Outcue: "...that’s pretty fast."

According to Kastner, a positive aspect is having everyone working on behalf of the consumer.  

Cut #2    :16       Outcue: "...get the job done."

Kastner says producer investments are the seed money for improvements.

Cut #3    :15       Outcue: "...not had the checkoff."

Kastner also hopes consumers recognizes what the industry is doing.

Cut #4    :13       Outcue: "...working to do that."

Many E. coli intervention strategies, such as steam pasteurization, are researched with support from the national $1-per-head beef checkoff, which funds beef research, information and promotion programs to help increase demand for beef.