Safe and Fair Enforcement and Recall for Meat and Poultry Act of 2002

The Safe and Fair Enforcement and Recall (SAFER) for Meat and Poultry Act of 2002 was designed to strengthen the federal government's ability to remove contaminated food from the marketplace. Under this bill, meat and poultry businesses would be legally required to notify the Department of Agriculture (USDA) if they believe their products are mislabeled or unsafe for consumption. Most significantly, the act would grant the USDA the authority to order mandatory recalls of dangerous meat and poultry products, whereas the agency currently relies on companies to initiate such recalls voluntarily. For the average citizen, this legislation aims to increase food safety by ensuring that contaminated products are identified and removed from grocery store shelves more quickly and reliably.