The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deputy commissioner for food policy and response has unveiled a major policy initiative calling it a blueprint for its “New Era for Smarter Food Safety.” Of many coming changes to FDA’s oversight of the food industry, traceability was noted by the deputy commissioner as the “Achilles heel” of the food safety system. The proposed policy initiative plan will focus, in part, on modernizing the way FDA conducts investigations so it can more quickly pinpoint the origin of an outbreak of foodborne illness. And there’s lots more.
Aside from traceability, according to Politico, the blueprint also touches on data analysis tools that can help the FDA identify potential food safety risks. For example, how can the agency adapt its work to evolving food supply chains, like e-commerce, and educating farmers, food companies and consumers about best practices to prevent foodborne illnesses The agency has not estimated how much additional funding it will need to implement what has been labeled as their new 10-year vision plan. It is still to be seen if this will all be “more of the same” or actually foster new regulations, rules, policy changes, etc., all of which will be announced later this year. Stay tuned.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), another mega federal agency that oversees the food industry aside from our peers at the FDA, has announced their own new annual plan of action for their Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) which is part of the Office of Food Safety at USDA. Mindy Brashears, who is currently the USDA deputy undersecretary and the highest-ranking food safety official in the U.S., has crafted this formal, new 2020 plan.
The Vision Plan has three parts: lead with science, build relationships, and influence change in behavior. Brashears said her department will do this “by ensuring that we have data-driven science and technology, that all stakeholders work collaboratively and in partnership toward common goals, and that we better educate industry and consumers about food safety behaviors so that FSIS will make a positive impact on the public health and safety of the nation’s food supply.”
Bottom line: Expect to see a lot of new, proposed initiatives. After all, it is an election year! Thrown into the mix will surely be long-term ramifications of the coronavirus and the trillion-dollar stimulus package that will impact every community in the U.S. in one way or another.
FDA Reduces Food Facility Inspections
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FDA commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn announced late last month that the agency will focus its resources on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. To implement this strategy the FDA has suspended foreign food facility inspections and issued revised communications stating that it was also reducing its domestic onsite audits of food facilities and exercising enforcement discretion.
Grocers Criticized For Recall Policies
The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG) has released a study highly critical of the food recall practices of the country’s major food retailers. The study – “Food Recall Failure: 2020 Scorecard” – rates 26 grocery chains on their interaction with consumers during food recalls. Twenty-two of the 26 chains studied failed U.S. PIRG’s criteria for providing important recall information to consumers. Need more information? Go the U.S. PIRG’s website at www.uspirg.org.
Consumers Confused By Plant-Based Meat Labeling
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) recently released the results of its online survey of more than 1,800 consumers on their understanding of plant-based meat substitutes. NCBA reports that the survey – “Meat Substitute Brand Understanding” – shows widespread consumer confusion regarding the ingredient composition of plant-based meat substitutes. The survey found that less than half of the respondents understood that the label terminology “plant-based beef” was meant to describe an entirely vegetarian product. In addition, one-third of the respondents believed that the plant-based products contained at least some meat.
By the way, the meat industry raised the intensity of its attack on plant-based meat substitutes with a TV commercial that only ran in the Washington, D.C. market during the Super Bowl. NBC reported that the commercial, sponsored by the Center for Consumer Freedom and funded by food industry related groups, attacked the science behind plant-based meats, claiming that they contained methylcellulose, a chemical laxative. Impossible Foods returned fire by claiming that there is poop in ground beef from cows. I can’t make this stuff up! And the fight between fake and the real stuff goes on and on!
FDA Releases Plan To Specifically Advance Safety Of Leafy Greens
Leafy green vegetables have contributed their share of life-threatening foodborne outbreaks in the past few years. Last month, FDA released their 2020 Leafy Greens STEC Action Plan, outlining steps the agency plans to take this year to advance the safety of leafy greens. While most strains of E. coli are harmless, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, or STEC, can be life-threatening.
The FDA will hold a special webinar soon to further discuss their action plan with interested stakeholders. Alert your produce people to check the FDA website for more details. Even if you miss the webinar, you will still be able to obtain details from the FDA website.
Coronavirus And Food Stamps
The Trump administration was continuing to tighten the screws on food stamp recipients just prior to the coronavirus outbreak and then everything was placed on hold. The new coronavirus stimulus package boosts SNAP funds by 15 percent. Also, another final rule I’ve previously written about WAS set to take effect this month that would have curtailed states’ abilities to waive work requirements for certain able-bodied adult recipients, tossing an estimated 700,000 people from the SNAP program. However, a U.S District Court last month okayed a preliminary injunction to halt the rule.
As a result of the coronavirus, at press time Congress was reauthorizing the Pandemic SNAP (P-SNAP) Program. According to Politico, the program was last authorized, but not operated, during the global H1N1virus in 2009. A USDA representative said P-SNAP gives households with children who are eligible for free and reduced-price school lunch additional funds on an Electronic Benefit Transfer card (EBT) when schools are closed. The program is designed to ensure low-income Americans have access to food during a crisis.
Dietary Guidelines Update
The 2020 dietary guidelines advisory committee held its fifth meeting last month which was the final meeting before the committee publicly shares its draft report, which is slated to be released in early May. The critically important task of the committee is to rewrite the U.S. dietary guidelines that are used by policymakers and health professionals to improve overall eating patterns of Americans. The Guidelines are re-written every five years and are also used as marketing tools by many segments of the food industry. Next step is for the committee to send its report to USDA and HHS for final approval.
Meanwhile, Politico’s Morning Agriculture reported that the 2020 dietary advisory committee is being pressured by interest groups that want the 10 percent limit on saturated fat consumption raised. Last month a large group of nutrition researchers from well-regarded universities in the U.S., Canada and Denmark met with leaders of both USDA and the Health and Human Services Department to tell them that the current 10 percent standard is outdated and not supported by recent research. A second group called the Nutrition Coalition argued that there was a lack of scientific evidence linking saturated fats to heart disease. They were joined in these efforts to roll back the standard by the International Dairy Foods Association and the dairy industry.
Nutrition Facts Educational Campaign
Last month the FDA announced the launch of the “New Nutrition Facts Label – What’s in It for You?” education campaign. The campaign is designed to increase awareness of the new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods, which reflects updated scientific information, including the link between diet and chronic diseases such as obesity and heart disease. The Nutrition Facts label educational campaign is part of the agency’s comprehensive, formal multi-year Nutrition Innovation Strategy, which is designed to empower consumers with information to make informed food choices and encourages industry innovation toward healthier foods that consumers are seeking.
Global Seafood Traceability
The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability released the first global standards for tracing seafood from where it is caught to where it is sold. The standards will address an illegal fishing industry that represents more than 25% of the commercial catch with a value of more than $36 billion. They address the data elements that need to be tracked and the digital tools needed to share the information necessary to stop illegal fishing. The Global Dialogue, which had more than 60 international companies and nongovernmental agencies participating, was organized by the World Wildlife Fund Institute of Food Technologists.
Until next month, keep your hands washed, don’t touch your face, and practice social-distancing. Above all – stay healthy!
Barry Scher is associated with the public policy firm of Policy-Solutions LLC and may be reached at [email protected].