Principles of Food Law: A Food Science Perspective

The book is arranged in twelve chapters, each dedicated to an important topic in food law, designed so that each chapter builds on the information presented in the preceding one. Each chapter consists of an introduction, several topical sections, conclusions, and a list of references for further study. Within each chapter, relevant case law is presented, designed to help students learn how laws are applied, how decisions are rendered, but also to realize the importance of using logic in presenting persuasive arguments in a court of law. Finally, the information is presented in a way that does not overindulge in legal terms but which seeks to strike a balance between the need to learn proper terminology while remaining easy to understand by students outside the legal profession. In 2001, Professor Murano was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve as Undersecretary for Food Safety at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the highest ranking food safety official in the U.S. government. In that role, she oversaw the policies and programs of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), a public health agency within the USDA charged with ensuring that the commercial supply of meat, poultry, and processed egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged. This included overseeing imports of these products from other countries. At the time of Dr. Murano’s tenure, the agency counted with approximately 10,000 food inspectors who oversaw over 6,500 meat and poultry processing plants in the U.S., as well as policy development specialists, investigators, scientists, public health officers, and food safety communications experts, counting with a budget of about $1billion. Notably, Dr. Murano represented the U.S. government at the Codex Alimentarius Commission meetings, as well as other food safety international meetings. As a result of her leadership regarding food regulation and enforcement, FSIS reached the Centers for Disease Control’s Healthy People 2020 goals of reducing foodborne illnesses six years ahead of schedule, and saw a dramatic decline in outbreaks of foodborne illness, and in recalls of meat and poultry products due to pathogen contamination. In 2005, Dr. Murano returned to Texas A&M, where she was appointed Dean and Vice Chancellor of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the largest such program in the nation. During her tenure, she reversed the declining enrollment in the College, secured increased funding from the state for the agriculture agencies, and rebranded the agencies to better reflect the important role of agriculture in the life sciences. In 2008, Dr. Murano became the first woman, and first Hispanic president of Texas A&M University. Her initiatives resulted in an increase in state funding, remodeling of the Memorial Student Center and Military Walk ahead of schedule, securing funding for the construction of the Agriculture and Life Sciences buildings, double-digit increases in enrollment of minorities, the development of the first-ever academic master plan, all resulting in the rise in the university’s rankings by U.S. News & World Reports from 24th to 21st among public universities during her tenure. Since June of 2012, Dr. Murano has been serving as Director of the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture at Texas A&M University, which conducts development projects to lift small farmers out of poverty and hunger in Asia, Latin America, Sub Saharan Africa, and the Middle East. In addition to her teaching and research duties, she serves on the Board of Directors of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) for North America, the Food Processors Institute Foundation, Food Safety Net Services, and the Hormel Foods Corporation.