For most of us, food safety is a topic that, at best, only lurks at the edges of our brains. It rarely becomes something we really think about until we open up our refrigerator and try to figure out what’s growing in the back corner of the bottom shelf, or until we hear stories about people being poisoned by leafy green vegetables or bad eggs bought at the local supermarket.

But, food safety is a huge issue. And, mostly due to the large number of food-borne illnesses in recent years, a broad food-safety bill has been working its way through Congress. The Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) recently passed in the Senate despite some opposition from both large and small food companies.

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