Legislative Line

There continues to be useful information – but, in some cases misinformation – being disseminated about the pandemic. With so much at stake for the food industry, and especially the retail food industry whose workers are on the frontlines, it is important that there be a clearinghouse that the industry can count on aside from government sources, which in these days, is even suspect. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a Washington, DC-based non-profit watchdog and consumer advocacy group that focuses on promoting safer and healthier foods, has announced the expansion of “Evidence Hub,” an online resource that helps clinicians, journalists, and others in the food industry and elsewhere find vetted sources of information on COVID-19.

CSPI said that there is a need to find fact-checked information, and the organization says they have met this need with a new filterable directory of websites identifying effective public health measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization is now maintaining its “Evidence Hub” for disseminating information about COVID -19 and they are also working to stop the spread of the disease by advocating for worker safety. They also reported that to alleviate hunger and stimulate the economy, CSPI is urging Congress to increase access to, and benefits from, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). This new and additional “Evidence Hub” resource for the food industry is something that your operations staff and food safety experts may want to check out, especially as we strive to do our very best to maintain a healthy and safe environment for our customers, employees and other stakeholders. Just as an example of the critical need to have reliable facts at your disposal, we are all using hand sanitizing lotion throughout the day, right? However, the CSPI just announced a public alert about hand sanitizers with possible methanol contamination. Methanol, also known as wood alcohol, can be toxic when absorbed through the skin or fatal if ingested. So, all hand sanitizers are not alike. For more information, go to the CSPI website at cspinet.org to access their new “Evidence Hub.”

SNAP Benefits To Increase In 2021

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has released its “Cost of Foods Report,” announcing a more than 5 percent increase in the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan from last year. This increase is more than double the 20-year annual average increase of around 2 percent. What does all this mean? Based on this new update, beginning October 1, 2020, SNAP participants’ maximum monthly benefit allotment will be at the highest level in the history of the program.

The new maximum benefit for a household of four will be $680, an approximate 5.3 percent increase over the current maximum allotment of $646. Other actions taken to help during the pandemic include: allowing states to issue emergency supplemental SNAP benefits; expanding the online purchasing pilot program to now 47 states, which covers more than 90 percent of all SNAP households; and increasing support to food banks with more than $6 billion worth of food and other supplies. Millions more needy individuals and families could sign up for the SNAP program if Congress allows temporary unemployment bonuses to lapse. However, all is not roses. The Center for Digital Democracy, a non- profit that works to protect the privacy of individuals and organizations in the U.S., warned that the rapidly increasing number of SNAP recipients using their benefits to buy groceries online are more vulnerable to e-commerce marketers scouring their personal data and spamming them with ads for unhealthy foods.

Labeling Of Cell-Cultured Meat

Cell-cultured product information continues to be increasingly mentioned in the news media (this is not to be confused with the popularity of soy-based meat products that are already available in food stores). Many months ago, I informed my readers that the Food Safety and Information Service (FSIS) and FDA were developing joint principles for the labeling of food products made from the cultured cells of animals under their respective jurisdictions. These proposed products within the meat, poultry and seafood product categories will be grown from animal cells, not from raising animals on the hoof on the farm or ranch. These lab-cultured, cell-cultured meat products will be available soon for the commercial market. Last month in a joint statement, FDA and USDA officials announced they will soon be accepting public comments on a rulemaking program for the labeling of cell-based products.

“FSIS and FDA are committed to developing joint principles for the labeling of food products made from the cultured cells of animals under their respective jurisdictions,” FSIS’s Matthew Michael recently said. “These principles will aim to eliminate any confusion among consumers – regardless of the species.”

However, nothing is easy to accomplish these days when it comes to bioengineered products. Food Navigator reported recently that The National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard, which requires firms to label ‘bioengineered’ foods and beverages, is unlawful and should be nullified and then revised, according to a new lawsuit filed by a coalition of retailers and nonprofits who want stricter GMO labeling laws. The law will become mandatory in January 2022. The new lawsuit takes issue with multiple aspects of the law, from its limited scope, to its requirement to use the word ‘bioengineered’ on labels instead of more familiar terms such as ‘GMO’ or ‘genetically engineered.’ The aim is to have the court declare the regulations unlawful and nullify them, and then return the issue to USDA with orders to fix the unlawful parts, said the Center for Food Safety. Also, in a related matter, FSIS received a petition from the Harvard Law School’s Animal Law and Policy Clinic regarding the naming of cell-based products and requested that a formal labeling approach be reviewed. Stay tuned!

Controlling Prescription Drug Prices

We are getting close to the November elections, so watch carefully for what promises come out of Washington and/or even from the Biden campaign. But the real power these days belongs to the man in the White House, so recently President Trump signed three executive orders addressing the high prices of prescription drugs and threatened to sign a fourth if drug manufacturers do not put forward acceptable proposals for reducing prices, according to an FDA Law Blog that crossed my desk recently.

For the most part, the executive orders recycle proposals previously issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Nevertheless, it is significant that Trump has now very publicly thrown his weight behind these approaches, all of which are likely to carry momentum regardless of the results of the November election.

Inspections Of Small Businesses

If you have a small retail food or manufacturing business (those with fewer than 500 employees), the FDA has announced that routine inspections of small businesses to verify compliance with the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act’s (FSMA) Intentional Adulteration (IA) rule will begin in March 2021. The FSMA IA rule is designed to address hazards that may be intentionally introduced to foods, including the intent to cause widescale public health harm. Food facilities covered by the rule are required to develop and implement a food defense plan that identifies vulnerabilities.

Last year I wrote about this issue and said that large businesses under the IA rule would be inspected beginning earlier this year. That has occurred. What this now means for all food retailers and manufacturers is that when routine inspections begin for facilities covered by the IA rule, they will encompass food defense plan “quick checks” during regularly scheduled food safety inspections. These “quick checks” allow FDA to verify that the facility has satisfied the basic requirements of the rule.

Lack Of Leadership

Finally, there was a sad commentary reported in the Wall Street Journal last month that I took note of. The article stated that as a result of the pandemic, nearly 20  percent of Americans with kids at home could not afford to feed their families enough food, up from 17  percent in early June, according to Census figures. The numbers are expected to rise as the pandemic continues along but at presstime, the president and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced up to an additional $1 billion for the “Farmers to Families Food Box Program” that I have written about in the past. The additional funding will allow the program to continue critical support to farmers, distributors, and American families in need. Let me conclude by saying that this dilemma should never have festered in the first place and because of a lack of leadership, this situation should not be happening in the United States of America! Ugh! So, until next month, stay safe and stay healthy.

Barry Scher is associated with the public policy firm of Policy Solutions LLC and may be reached at [email protected].