Tag Archives: USDA

Nebraska Bill Defines Meat as Derived from Livestock or Poultry

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Introduced January 10, 2019, Nebraska Legislative Bill 14 would prohibit “misrepresenting a product as meat that is not derived from livestock or poultry.” The bill, which was referred to the Agriculture Committee on January 14, was introduced by Sen. Carol Blood. “I’m not bringing this bill to tell people what they can and can’t eat. All … Continue Reading

Lapse in Government Funding Continues to Affect FDA, USDA

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As previously covered on this blog, without either a fiscal year 2019 appropriation or a Continuing Resolution, a partial government shutdown, which began on December 22, 2018, has continued to impact both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As of the time of this blog’s publication, the government has … Continue Reading

USDA Publishes Final Rule Amending the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances for Organic Handling or Production

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The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is responsible for maintaining the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (the “National List”) for organic handling and production as part of the National Organic Program (NOP) under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA; Public Law 101-624, Nov. 28, 1990).  The … Continue Reading

FDA, USDA Impacted by Lapse in Government Funding

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As of the time of this blog’s publication, without either a fiscal year 2019 appropriation or a Continuing Resolution, a partial government shutdown, which began on December 22, 2018, has continued to impact departments and agencies across the federal government. Both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are directly … Continue Reading

In Light of 2018 Farm Bill, FDA Issues Statement on Use of CBD in Food; Completes Evaluation of 3 Hemp-Related GRASNs

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The Agriculture Improvement Act (also known as “the 2018 Farm Bill”) was signed into law on December 20, 2018.  Among other things, the law changes certain federal authorities relating to the production and marketing of hemp, defined as cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.), and derivatives of cannabis (e.g., CBD) with extremely low (less than 0.3% on … Continue Reading

National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard Final Rule Released

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After much anticipation, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has released the final rule establishing the national mandatory bioengineered (BE) food disclosure standard. The rule is scheduled to be published on December 21, 2018 in the Federal Register. As previously reported on this blog, the proposed rule was published on May 4, 2018 and approximately 14,000 … Continue Reading

FSIS Announces Move from Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis to Whole Genome Sequencing for Analyzing Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli (STEC) and Salmonella Isolates

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  Whole genome sequencing (WGS) determines the order of all of the DNA building blocks (nucleotides) in an organism’s entire genome in a single laboratory process.  A comparison of the DNA sequence of an isolated bacterial pathogen to the sequences from other samples in a DNA database can pinpoint the source of a foodborne disease … Continue Reading

Contrary to Popular Reports, Farm Bill Will Not Affect FDA Status of CBD

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Media outlets are reporting that a Farm Bill provision removing industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act will change the FDA status of cannabidiol (CBD) in foods.  However, the relevant provisions under Subtitle G (“Hemp Production”) affect only the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA’s) authority over hemp farming and allow states to … Continue Reading

Mixed Reactions to Final Rule on School Meal Flexibilities

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As previously posted on this blog on November 30, 2017, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced temporary exemptions to some of the rigid nutrition standards for school meals established by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act in 2010 and published an interim final rule, titled the “School Meal Flexibility Rule,” that would make some of … Continue Reading

Important Details Remain Unsettled Following USDA and FDA Announcement of Decision to Jointly Regulate Cell-Cultured Meat

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As previously reported on this blog, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have both claimed regulatory oversight of cell-cultured meat, a product that some say could be available for marketing in as early as three years.  Federal law grants regulatory authority over meat products, poultry, catfish, and … Continue Reading

CDC Issues Update on Multistate Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Raw Turkey

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An outbreak of Salmonella Reading linked to raw turkey that began in November 2017 continues to sicken Americans in 35 states.  Raw turkey pieces, ground turkey, whole turkey, and turkey pet food have been linked to illnesses in humans. A total of 164 people have been infected, 47% of whom have been hospitalized.  There has … Continue Reading

USDA Secretary Signals USDA Role Over Animal Cell Culture Technology Regulation Ahead of Joint USDA-FDA Meeting

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As previously reported on this blog, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that they will hold a joint meeting on October 23-24, 2018, to discuss the use of cell culture technology to develop products derived from livestock and poultry. The meeting will focus on potential hazards, regulatory … Continue Reading

USDA Updates Poultry Line Speed Standards

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On August 21, 2014, USDA-FSIS published a final rule called the “Modernization of Poultry Slaughter Inspection” (79 FR 49566, Aug. 21, 2014) which amended the Agency’s poultry regulations to establish an inspection system for young chicken and turkey slaughter establishments, called the New Poultry Inspection System (NPIS). Under the final rule, the maximum line speed for young … Continue Reading

China, U.S. Tariffs to Have Long-Term Effect on Soybeans

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The same day that China and the United States imposed new tariffs on each other’s products, including food items, the Soybean Association issued a statement warning about the long-term effects of the trade war. Noting that U.S. soybean producers have spent more than 40 years and millions of dollars building the China market for soy … Continue Reading

FDA Publishes Goals for Supporting Antimicrobial Stewardship in Veterinary Settings for Fiscal Years 2019-2023

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On July 31, 2018, FDA announced that it was working on a five-year blueprint to combat antimicrobial resistance in animals.  On September 14, 2018, FDA published Supporting Antimicrobial Stewardship in Veterinary Settings: Goals for Fiscal Years 2019-2023. FDA provides action items to promote three goals; we summarize several major steps for each; Align Antimicrobial Drug … Continue Reading

USDA and FDA Announce Joint Meeting on Animal Cell Culture Technology

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Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that they will hold a joint meeting on October 23-24, 2018, to discuss the use of cell culture technology to develop products derived from livestock and poultry. As we previously reported on this blog, FDA held a public meeting on … Continue Reading

USDA Bioengineered Food Labeling Final Rule Sent to OMB for Review

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In a sign of progress, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) final rule for the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (NBFDS) on August 31, 2018 – less than two months after the comment period closed on the proposed rule for the NBFDS on July 3, 2018. As … Continue Reading

Former Director of the FDA’s Office of Biotechnology Pens Op-Ed Criticizing FDA Enforcement on Organic Labeling, FDA Commissioner Pledges to Look at Labeling Claims in Organics

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In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Dr. Henry Miller, the former founding director of the FDA’s Office of Biotechnology, criticizes FDA as giving organic food labeling and advertisement “a complete pass.”  The author calls out FDA’s lack of enforcement on claims that organic foods are grown “without toxic or persistent pesticides,” noting that in fact, … Continue Reading

NGOs Sue USDA Over Delay in Issuing BE Disclosure Rules

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The 2016 National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standards (NBFDS) Act directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to develop regulations and standards to create mandatory disclosure requirements for bioengineered (BE) foods by July 2018. The Center for Food Safety (CFS) and the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) filed a lawsuit in the Northern California U.S. District Court on August … Continue Reading

European Union’s Top Court Rules on Gene-Editing Technology

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The European Court of Justice has ruled that all techniques that induce DNA mutagenesis result in products that can be regulated as genetically modified organisms.  GMO regulation had previously been limited to products of genetic engineering where DNA from a separate organism was introduced into the target organism’s genome.  Newly developed gene editing techniques exploit … Continue Reading
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