Food safety is a scientific discipline describing the handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness. This includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potentially severe health hazards. Food can transmit disease from person to person as well as serve as a growth medium for bacteria that can cause food poisoning. In developed countries there are intricate standards for food preparation, whereas in lesser developed countries the main issue is simply the availability of adequate safe water, which is usually a critical item.

A summary of recent food safety issues including E. coli contamination of meat, the USDA/FDA press conference on food products from cloned animals and a petition you can sign.

consumer groups and lawmakers in Washington pointed out that the two agreements covered only a small number of products. And the success of the new regulatory effort depends on whether Chinese officials can get producers to meet U.S. safety standards and whether thinly stretched U.S. government agencies can ensure that China keeps its promises.

With Chinese food safety issues in the headlines, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have signed the first U.S./European food safety agreement to encourage the sharing of confidential scientific and other information between EFSA and the FDA to ensure that food is safe.

"Businessmen have already signed contracts based on mutual trust. They must have included terms of quality and usage in their contracts. Only if the shipments violated these terms or the importing country's quarantine rules should they be stopped. Otherwise, they should be accepted." Wang Xinpei, a ministry spokesman in Beijing said.