Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jan 9, 2012
Article by: MICHAEL J. CRUMB, Associated Press
The U.S. Agriculture Department announced Monday it will close nearly 260 offices nationwide, a move that won praise for cutting costs but raised concerns about the possible effect on food safety.
The plan calls for 259 offices, labs and other facilities to be closed, affecting the USDA headquarters in Washington and operations in 46 states. Seven foreign offices also will be shut.
Other parts of the announcement were a surprise. Andrew Lorenz, deputy district manager for the Food Safety and Inspection Service in Minneapolis, learned his office would be closed, along with those in Madison, Wis., and Lawrence, Kan. ”They wiped out the entire Midwest,” said Lorenz, whose office handles all federal inspections of meat, poultry and egg products in Minnesota, Montana, the Dakotas and Wyoming. FSIS offices in Chicago and Des Moines will remain open. It was not immediately clear whether work from the other offices would be shifted to them. Lorenz said about 16 people work in his office, and he expected 12 to 14 of their jobs to be eliminated.
Elisabeth Hagen, undersecretary for food safety, said the closures would affect management and support staff as FSIS offices are consolidated from 15 to 10, but that there wouldn’t be a reduction in inspectors or inspection work. ”There will be no reduction in inspection presence at slaughter and processing facilities and no risk for consumers,” Hagen said. ”Not only do we have a statutory obligation to be in every facility, we have an unwavering commitment to food safety,” she added. “We will still be on the job, in every facility, every day.”
The USDA manages a wide array of programs, from emergency aid for farmers to grants for rural development and food assistance programs for the poor. Along with the Agricultural Research and Food Safety and Inspection services, six other departments will be affected by closures, including the Farm Service Agency and Rural Development.
Bruce Babcock, a farm economist at Iowa State University and director of the school’s Center for Agricultural and Rural Development, said consolidation was a long time coming, given that advances in technology made it possible to file applications and do other tasks over the phone or online. He said he’s more concerned about the USDA’s ability to maintain programs that deal with disease prevention. ”The capability to collect data and do the behind the scenes activities that really help U.S. agriculture stay safe, that should be concerning,” Babcock said.
Colin Woodall, a spokesman for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which represents more than 147,000 ranchers nationwide, applauded the USDA for trying to save taxpayers’ money in tight economic times but also expressed concern about food safety. ”We can’t say this is all great news because some offices will be closed,” he said. “We have to make sure we have the process in place to keep food safe.”
