Official Works to Protect Food From Terror Menace

9/4/2003 Official Works to Protect Food From Terror Menace - 9/4 Washington Post

"We've got to keep alert," Murano, 44, said in an interview. Since the beginning of the Iraq war, the USDA has increased testing for biological, radiological and chemical contaminants in meat, poultry and egg products by 50 percent, she said. "My biggest fear is that we as a nation become complacent."

Murano's job is often cited as one of the toughest management jobs in Washington. She oversees an industry that generates more than $120 billion in sales a year, accounting for a third of all consumer spending on food. Into her grinder churn the often competing interests of business groups, consumer advocates, lawmakers, environmentalists and relatives of victims of food-borne illnesses. No matter what she says, it is almost certain to irk someone.

"They call me the Cuban Mighty Mouse at the agency," said Murano, who was born in Havana and is barely five feet tall. "I'm little, but I have to be tough."

To prepare for the possibility of an attack on the food supply, Murano participates in crisis simulations with supervisors from other agencies. In a recent scenario, terrorists had contaminated food with botulism, E. coli and chemical toxins. Murano, in the simulation, shut down the nation's 6,500 meat and poultry processing plants, which would have caused estimated losses of billions of dollars per day if the scenario became reality.

"It's one of the most vulnerable points that we have as a society," said Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona, who has worked with Murano on food security issues. "Imagine you get into a food supply at Fort Bragg or a Coast Guard base. You could bring a whole community to its knees."

As for Murano's efforts, Carmona said: "She is tiny, but boy, she is the mouse that roared."

The Food and Safety Inspection Service, which Murano administers, recently issued new security guidelines for transporting meat, poultry and egg products. Food is at risk when it is in transit, Murano said -- during loading and unloading, for example -- because supervision is relatively lax. The new guidelines advise inspectors and plant managers to screen employees for odd behavior such as arriving unusually early, taking pictures of the establishment or removing documents from the facility. Other tips for handlers: "Check food for unusual odor or appearance" and "Do not pick up hitchhikers."

The agency plans to issue guidelines for consumers in October.

Brian Halweil, a researcher at Worldwatch Institute, an environmental think tank, called the guidelines "Band-Aids" that fail to address the underlying problems that make the industry susceptible to bioterrorists. A key vulnerability, he said, is the food industry's labor force.

"The workforce is made up of underpaid, undertrained, potentially very disgruntled illegal aliens, with not a lot of job allegiance or background checks," Halweil said. "Their potential to be part of a contamination scheme is high."

Groups representing victims of food poisoning are also critical. "Food security is taking away from food safety," said Nancy Donley, president of Safe Tables Our Priority.

There has been one known terrorist attack on food in the United States. In 1984, a religious sect sprinkled salmonella bacteria on salad bars in Oregon, sickening 751 people. Although the terrorist threat is important, Donley said, it is diverting attention and resources from the problem of food-borne illnesses, which kill 5,000 people every year. Donley's son, Alex, 8, died after eating a hamburger contaminated with E. coli.

Last year, there was a record number of recalls, says the USDA: 113, involving 60.6 million pounds of meat and poultry.

"Being in charge of food safety in a Republican administration is mission impossible," said Carol Tucker Foreman of the Consumer Federation of America and an assistant secretary of agriculture for food and consumer services in the Carter administration. "The public wants safe food, but your political base is saying, 'Don't be too hard on the industry.' "

Business groups, meanwhile, say the government is using the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks as an excuse to expand food regulation.

This kind of criticism -- and more -- is all in a day's work for Murano. It is why she has a SpongeBob screensaver and keeps a Bible next to her computer.

"Anything to keep myself sane in this job," she said, displaying her collection of plastic toys. When she reads her Bible, she said, "I realize that, good or bad, God loves me. Because people are always mad at me."

Before joining the USDA in October 2001, Murano was the director of the Center for Food Safety at Texas A&M University. A microbiologist by training, she enjoyed the pace of an academic life. These days, she is up at 4:30 a.m. and stays at work until after 7 p.m. One evening, while at the Kennedy Center, watching "Aida" from the presidential box, she said a thought occurred to her: "What am I doing here? I'm just this little girl from Havana."

"She's not used to the hot seat," said Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-Tex.), chairman of the House Appropriations agriculture subcommittee. "I give her pep talks. . . . She's an expert to the nth degree. I say, 'Just remember you have truth and substance on your side.' "

Her husband, Peter Murano, deputy administrator for special nutrition programs at the USDA, teases her about how clean she keeps the kitchen. She sprays all their produce with a solution of one tablespoon of chorine in a gallon of water, when he would just as soon eat an unwashed peach.

"He says I should buy stock in the Clorox corporation," Murano quipped.

When they try a new restaurant, she orders a drink and then goes to wash her hands. If the restroom is dirty, she reasons, the kitchen must be, too. "I'm sorry, we can't eat here," Murano will say to the waiter.

On days when Murano has to announce a meat recall, she and her husband go somewhere special, the Silver Diner in Arlington. Murano orders the burger basket -- a vote of confidence for USDA beef.

© 2003 The Washington Post Company

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