Will The Food Safety Bill Make Our Meals Safer?

Nov. 17, 2010— -- Almost a year and a half after the House passed a bill to toughen the nation's food safety rules, the Senate finally seems poised to take up the issue.

The Senate began debating the food safety bill Wednesday but the measure may be tangled up in jockeying and debate for days -- even weeks.

The bill would give the FDA the power to mandate food recalls. It would also allow the FDA to increase inspections of food producers, improve tracking of fruit and vegetable shipments and set stricter standards for food manufacturers to help prevent outbreaks of contamination.

As the Senate begins to debate a food safety bill, ABC News decided to check with some of those we have interviewed over the past few years while covering dozens of recalls of everything from soup to nuts. We asked for their opinion on the most important changes they hope will emerge from a food safety law. How will this make our meals safer? And what is it missing?

Here are some of their responses: