The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a review of work done over the last year in advancing its New Era of Smarter Food Safety (New Era) Blueprint, which was released in July 2020. In a corresponding FDA...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA or the department) recently announced plans to invest more than US$4 billion to strengthen critical supply chains under President Biden’s “Build Back Better” initiative....more
On 8 June 2021, the Senate passed the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA), which contains a wide range of provisions aimed at improving the United States’ global economic competitiveness, particularly toward China. ...more
6/10/2021
/ China ,
Competition ,
Country of Origin ,
E-Commerce ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food Supply ,
Imports ,
Internet Retailers ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Motor Vehicles ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Product Labels ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Textiles
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) recently released long-awaited proposed regulations to implement Proposition 12, the Farm Animal Confinement Initiative (the proposed regulations). ...more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or the agency) recently released a report entitled Resiliency Roadmap for FDA Inspectional Oversight (Report) recapping the inspectional activities across all parts of the agency during...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently announced a new initiative called Closer to Zero, which is an action plan that identifies steps the agency will take over the next three years (and beyond) to reduce exposure to...more
On April 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh placed a “hold” on the implementation of a potential U.S. Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which would set...more
As employers are revising their return to work protocols in light of increased vaccination efforts and the prospect of increased on-site work, the federal government has been busy implementing additional COVID-19 safety...more
As employers are revising their return to work protocols in light of increased vaccination efforts and the prospect of increased on-site work, the federal government has been busy implementing additional COVID-19 safety...more
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has partially granted a Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) petition regarding nitrate/nitrite claims on meat and poultry products produced using substances that...more
The United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued an instruction to field personnel, FSIS Notice 49-20, to begin implementing the agency’s new Adulterated Product Monitoring...more
10/5/2020
/ Agribusiness ,
Department of Agriculture ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) ,
Food Supply ,
Genetically Engineered Seed ,
GMO ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Retail Market ,
Tracking Systems
The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS or the agency) has issued a Proposed Rule to expand the circumstances in which FSIS will generically approve the labels of meat,...more
On September 1, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) held a joint webinar to discuss the jointly-issued Employee Health and Food Safety Checklist for Human and...more
9/4/2020
/ Animal Food ,
CGMP ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Safety Inspections ,
Social Distancing ,
Workplace Safety
On July 15, 2020, the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board passed first-in-the-nation codified emergency temporary standards (the Standards) establishing requirements for employers to control, prevent, and mitigate the...more
Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, the Commissioner of Food and Drugs for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a statement on July 10, 2020, describing the agency’s intentions and approach to resuming domestic inspections in light...more
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a guidance document titled Testing Strategy for COVID-19 in High-Density Critical Infrastructure Workplaces after a COVID-19 Case is Identified (the Guidance),...more
6/19/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Essential Workers ,
Food Service Workers ,
Occupational Exposure ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has published a Final Rule codifying internal procedures that must be followed when issuing agency guidance documents. The Final Rule amends USDA’s administrative regulations...more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently issued a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the potential use of the Defense Production Act (DPA) with regard to...more
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued Interim Guidance from CDC and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Manufacturing Workers and Employers (the Interim Guidance), which...more
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) recently issued a COVID-19 industry guidance intended for facilities that process or pack meat, dairy, or produce to support a safe and clean environment for workers. In...more
5/16/2020
/ Agribusiness ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Training ,
Farm Animals ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
Meat Processing Plants ,
OSHA ,
Public Health ,
Social Distancing ,
Workplace Decontamination ,
Workplace Safety
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently updated its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) webpage regarding COVID-19 to include a section on President Trump’s Executive Order (EO) invoking the Defense...more
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have issued interim guidance on COVID-19 considerations for meat and poultry processing workers and employers. This...more
5/1/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Farm Animals ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Meat Processing Plants ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Poultry ,
Public Health ,
Workplace Safety
This post summarizes the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Compliance Program Guidance Manual (CPGM) for food facilities subject to preventive controls and sanitary human food operation requirements. As an overview,...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently released guidance regarding compliance with the shell Egg Safety Rule during the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitate the distribution of eggs to retail. The agency also updated...more
In response to two petitions, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has announced that intends to conduct rulemaking to change its policy toward “Product of USA” claims for...more