The 117th Congress is under way! We have a totally new administration. We have literally thousands of new policy makers working throughout every corner of our government. So, let the races begin! As with any new administration, there is a very high level of excitement and eagerness especially during the first 100 days to make public announcements to tout accomplishments. That task falls primarily to President Biden’s new press secretary. It is thus very refreshing to have Jen Psaki in that important role. She brings a high level of professionalism to the job that had been lacking over the past four years.
The president’s first few weeks in office have focused on the COVID-19 issues and signing a lot of diverse executive orders dealing with a myriad of issues. Food industry issues were plentiful, too. For example, the president signed an executive order that directs the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to revise guidance to employers on workplace safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to consider whether emergency temporary standards are needed. The order calls on the secretary of labor to review OSHA’s enforcement efforts related to COVID-19 and identify any changes that could be made to better protect workers and ensure equity in enforcement. According to Meatingplace News, the order also seeks the launch of a national program to focus OSHA enforcement efforts for COVID-19 violations that puts the largest number of workers at serious risk.
SNAP Participant Changes
In other news coming from the Biden administration, the Department of Agriculture has announced a final rule enhancing employment and training opportunities for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants.
SNAP participants will now have exclusive access to training and support services to help them enter or move up in the workforce through state SNAP employment and training programs. The final rule makes a wide range of enhancements to these services to empower more SNAP participants to gain the skills, training, or work experience they need to move forward and into productive jobs. “This new rule continues USDA’s efforts to connect more SNAP households with the dignity and hope that work provides,” said USDA.
EBT Program
The White House also took steps to help needy Americans who utilize the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) program. The program was created to help replace subsidized and free school meals and will soon hopefully provide for a 15 percent increase in benefits which could provide an extra $100 over two months for an eligible family with three children. This effort was another step taken by the White House to fight hunger and protect workers. Of course, the most important issue still being debated at press time is clarifying guidelines for a new coronavirus relief package. I find it interesting that the government is telling Americans constantly to stay home to protect themselves and others from COVID-19 and at the same time the government is urging everyone to buy food online. This calls for some creativity as low-income families who need food assistance the most often do not have access to e-commerce. Go figure.
Nevertheless, what is most important is that in response to the national COVID-19 emergency, USDA is committed to finding new ways to increase SNAP benefits to all participants, especially the lowest-income households and those struggling to afford a healthy diet for their families.
White House Turns To Congress
As with any new administration, there is a lot to do and, again, the president and the White House are spending a lot of time creating new and expanded initiatives to help Americans during the pandemic. In summary, as part of the “American Rescue Plan,” the president is calling on Congress to do the following: extend the 15 percent SNAP benefit increase; invest another $3 billion through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to help vulnerable mothers and kids get the food they need; look for creative ways to support restaurants as a critical link in the food supply chain to help feed families in need; and provide U.S. territories with $1 billion in additional nutrition assistance funding.
Currently, some 43 million Americans count on SNAP to help them get food. However, USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan, which is the basis for determining SNAP benefits, is out of date with the economic realities most struggling households face when trying to buy and prepare healthy meals. As a result, the benefits may fall short of providing for healthy, adequate diets for many households, especially those in high cost of living areas. Therefore, as directed in the 2018 farm bill, USDA is now beginning the process of revising the Thrifty Food Plan to better reflect the costs of a healthy basic diet today.
Final Food Labeling Regulations
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that January 1, 2024 will be the uniform compliance date for final food labeling regulations that are issued in calendar years 2021 and 2022. This action does not change existing regulations for compliance dates contained in final rules published before January 1, 2021.
The FDA periodically announces uniform compliance dates for new food labeling requirements to minimize the economic impact of the food industry of having to respond separately to each labeling change. The FDA generally encourages the food industry to comply with the new labeling regulations as quickly as feasible. However, all food products subject to the January 1, 2024, uniform compliance date must comply with the appropriate labeling regulations when initially introduced into interstate commerce on or after January 1, 2024.
Food Traceability Updates
The FDA has also made two new, important updates to its materials for the food industry regarding the proposed rule, “Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods.” This information and the information above (Final Food Labeling Regulations) may be boring to some but not for your staff who oversee food labeling. FDA has made clarifying edits to the Food Traceability List, which details the foods for which the additional traceability recordkeeping requirements in the proposed rule would apply. The edits were made to certain commodity descriptions for clarity. All the specific edits are described in a memo titled “Food Traceability List for Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods’ Proposed Rule – Clarified Language.” Go to the FDA website for detailed information: www.fda.gov.
Next, FDA has published an FAQ, addressing questions that the agency has received from the food industry about the proposed rule through the Food Safety Modernization Act Technical Assistance Network to assist the food industry. Again, if this information is important to you, additional guidance may be found at FDA’s website.
Farm Bill In 2023
The critically important farm bill that impacts farm to fork issues, will soon once again become a “work in progress” before Congress. The farm bill is written every five years, so the 2018 farm bill is heading toward a major re-write in 2021. But as Congress starts to work on this issue with a new administration, there will be some difficult times ahead as three of the four framers of the previous farm bill will be missing. Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS), Representative Mike Conaway (R-TX) and Representative Collin Peterson (D-MN) are no longer on the Hill. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) is the only leader remaining who has a solid grasp on the agriculture committee and shepherding the farm bill will fall mainly on her shoulders.
Karla Thieman of the Russell Group, a heavy weight lobbying group in DC, said, “The farm bill expires in the first year of the next Congress so 2023, but I think they’re going to want to try to get a head start on it.” She added, “The other dynamic that will make this next farm bill really difficult, I think, is that we are heading into a period of austerity. People are talking about the deficit and how high it is, and that we need to cut government spending. So, the spending levels that have been going out to farmers I just don’t see how that will continue.”
The newly appointed secretary of agriculture will be tasked with implementing a new farm bill and at press time, it appears as if the secretary will be Tom Vilsack who held the same post for eight years during the Obama administration. While he certainly knows the ropes, he will still face many challenges in writing the next farm bill.
Electronic Nose
A team of scientists in Singapore has invented an electronic nose that can assess the freshness of meat with 98 percent accuracy. The e-nose employs a colored barcode that reacts with gasses produced by decaying meat and a barcode reader that used artificial intelligence to interpret the combination of colors on the barcode. To make the e-nose portable, the scientists integrated it into a smartphone app that can yield results in 30 seconds. Technology is truly amazing isn’t it?
Barry Scher is associated with the public policy firm of Policy Solutions LLC and may be reached at [email protected].
