This regular publication by DLA Piper lawyers focuses on helping clients navigate the ever-changing business, legal, and regulatory landscape.
Dr. Ben Carson sworn in as USDA nutrition advisor. Former Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., has been sworn in as the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Advisor for Nutrition, Health, and Housing. In a press release, the USDA stated that in this role, Dr. Carson will advise both President Donald Trump and USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins on nutrition, rural healthcare, and housing accessibility policy, and will join Rollins on the Make America Healthy Again Commission. Dr. Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, served as HUD secretary during the first Trump Administration.
Eleven food standards revoked. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has finalized its action to rescind the standards of identity for 11 foods no longer sold in the US. The revocations cover canned fruit and vegetable products, including seven saccharine-sweetened canned fruit standards. The revocation, which had been announced in the Federal Register on July 17, took effect on September 22, after the FDA received no significant adverse comment on the rescissions. The agency stated that it was “taking this action as these standards are no longer necessary to promote honesty and fair dealing in the interest of consumers. This action will remove obsolete rules to reduce unnecessary regulatory requirements.”
FSIS will now include gluten in major food allergen verification activities. On September 11, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) reissued Ongoing Verification of Product Formulation and Labeling Targeting the Nine Most Common ("Big 9") Food Allergens, its directive for inspection program personnel (IPP) about including gluten in their verification activities for major allergens. Although gluten is not one of the Big 9 major food allergens, IPP will now verify that establishments are accurately controlling and labeling it in the same way they address the Big 9. In other changes, FSIS is removing certain tree nuts that are no longer considered major food allergens, updating the milk category to include milk from not just cows but other ruminants, such as sheep and goats, and updating the eggs category to include eggs from fowl other than chickens, such as ducks or quail. The latter changes align with FDA’s January 2025 updates to the food allergen labeling requirements. FSIS is not changing any labeling requirements for milk and eggs, but is clarifying which types of milk and eggs are considered major allergens.
FDA finalizes prior notice requirements for imported food. On September 25, the FDA published a final rule amending its prior notice regulations for articles of food arriving by international mail. The new regulations will require that prior notice for articles of human and animal food arriving by international mail include the name of the mail service and a mail tracking number. These prior notices must be submitted within 10 calendar days from the issuance date of a notice or 10 calendar days from the date the response to a request for FDA review was issued. To reduce the amount of time such imports are held at ports of entry and to reduce duplicative submissions, the final rule also requires submission of a valid food facility registration within 30 calendar days from the date of these events. The agency stated that the final rule will enable it to better coordinate with US Customs and Border Protection, the US Postal Service, and other agencies in tracking, inspecting, and potentially holding or refusing articles identified as a possible bioterrorism risk. See the final rule.
Farm Credit Canada proposes $12 billion export diversification of Canadian food and beverage exports. The plan involves strengthening interprovincial trade, leveraging existing free trade agreements, and establishing new international trading partnerships. A key component of the plan is trade diversification, which includes promotion of the "buy Canadian" movement. Farm Credit Canada anticipates that these efforts will reduce US market dependence to 50 percent of 2023 levels.
FSIS launches streamlined program for meat and poultry exports to Mexico. On September 18, FSIS announced its support for a new program to expedite the rail export of US meat and poultry products to Mexican markets. Through this new partnership, inspection personnel from Mexico’s National Service for Agro-Alimentary Health, Safety and Quality (SENASICA) will conduct reinspections at participating federally inspected establishments to clear eligible US meat and poultry shipments for export at the point of origin. FSIS said this process will eliminate the need for routine border inspections by Mexican officials and allow for faster, more efficient delivery of American meat and poultry products. The program is voluntary for FSIS-inspected facilities and does not impose any new regulatory requirements on US exporters. According to the agency, this new arrangement is the first of its kind for the US meat and poultry industry. Mexico remains the largest export destination for US meat and poultry; in 2024, that trade exceeded $5.5 billion.
Canada imposes a temporary import restriction on pistachios from the Islamic Republic of Iran. Effective September 27, the CFIA has implemented a temporary restriction on the import of pistachios or pistachio products from the Islamic Republic of Iran. The measure aims to mitigate the risk of Salmonella infection. Products exported from Iran before the effective date will be subject to testing and may be held before release. For pistachios imported from other countries, CFIA requires proof that the product is not of Iranian origin; otherwise, the shipment will also be subject to testing.
USDA discontinues annual Household Food Security Report. The USDA has discontinued the Household Food Security Report, an annual review of food insecurity data in the US. The report is regarded as the nation’s primary gauge of food insecurity; it is used by government agencies to shape domestic food policy and to understand the effectiveness of federal food programs. In a statement on September 20, the USDA called the report, which has been produced since 1995, inaccurate and “unnecessary to carry out the work of the department.” The 2023 report, issued in 2024, warned of rising food insecurity, concluding that 13.5 percent of US households – 47 million people, 1 million more than the previous year – were “food insecure” (that is, not every member of every household had access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle). It also categorized 5.1 percent of US households as “very low food secure,” a more severe subset. On September 22, the USDA placed the team of researchers and economists who were working on the 2025 report on leave. The 2024 edition of the report is slated for release on October 22.
APHIS will host animal health restriction information. Consolidating country-specific requirements in one place, starting in early 2026 information on animal health restrictions affecting US exports of meat, poultry, and egg products will move from the FSIS Export Library to the APHIS website. The change, an FSIS press release stated, will deploy up-to-date technologies and data systems to “deliver information more efficiently, improve usability for industry, and strengthen the accuracy and reliability of the resources FSIS employees use every day.” FSIS is responsible for posting and maintaining certification requirements, while animal health restrictions are negotiated and maintained by APHIS.
British Columbia classifies meat inspectors as essential workers. After a strike disrupted slaughterhouse operations, the province has designated meat inspectors as essential workers. This designation is in response to pressure from local beef farmers and ranchers concerned about supply chain disruptions.
Another recall of a cinnamon with elevated levels of lead. As the result of an analysis conducted by the FDA, SLR Food Distribution has announced the recall of 1.76-ounce plastic jars of Wise Wife brand cinnamon due to elevated levels of lead. The implicated spice, bearing the universal product code 0688474302853, was sold in retail outlets in Florida, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Oklahoma, and Ohio, between February 15, 2024 and June 28, 2025. While the product is no longer on store shelves, health officials are expressing concerns that it may still be in home pantries. The FDA has been updating its public health alert about lead-tainted cinnamons in the wake of the discovery, in late 2023, of a nationwide lead poisoning outbreak in children. See some of our coverage of that story here and here.
British Columbia liquor store employees launch strike. Employees of provincially operated liquor stores in British Columbia have initiated a strike in pursuit of an 8.25-percent wage increase over two years. The strike also affects operations at the BC Liquor Distribution Branch. As of September 26, more than 14,000 government workers and 60 retail liquor stores are participating in the strike.
Two new FDA resources to expand transparency in foodborne outbreak investigations. In a September 24 Constituent Update, the FDA announced the availability of two new resources to improve public access to information about foodborne illness outbreaks: Foodborne Outbreak Overview of Data (FOOD) Reports and Executive Incident Summary (EIS) Abstracts for Closed Foodborne Illness Investigations. EIS abstracts are compiled after outbreak or adverse event investigations of an FDA-regulated human food product are closed and there is no longer an ongoing risk to the public. They provide high-level overviews of traceback, laboratory, and epidemiological findings. Find these reports on the new EIS page. FOOD Reports, FDA states, compile historical data on recurring events arising from pathogen-commodity pairs “to provide information that may be useful in preventing future foodborne illnesses.” The first two FOOD reports, both issued in September, focus on a hepatitis A outbreak linked to berries and a Salmonella outbreak linked to tahini. Find them on this page. The agency stated that these two new resources are part of its transparency initiative, created to complement existing tools while sharing “as much information as possible about foodborne illness investigations as soon as possible.”
Polymer and Food Protection Consortium study seeks to help industry identify chemicals of concern for food packaging. A new study from Iowa State University’s Polymer and Food Protection Consortium of chemicals of concern (CoCs) in food contact materials (FCMs) aims to provide a framework for the food packaging industry to update existing restricted substance lists (RSLs) or create new RSLs, to help the industry as well as regulators and other stakeholders “mitigate potential risks of hazardous chemicals to human and environmental health in the packaging industry.” The authors of the study note that at present, there are no RSLs for food contact materials that use a standardized methodology, making it “challenging to manufacture products complying with regulatory and diverse RSL requirements.” To guide producers in minimizing the risks arising from CoCs, the authors first reviewed publicly available RSLs to identify the CoCs that are considered high priority in FCMs, then went on to look at regulations, threshold limits, and typical FCM applications that have been developed by both US and international stakeholders. They next applied the Cramer decision tree method to classify RSL-listed substances – an approach that opens the door to comprehensive, consistent toxicological risk management in FCMs. The study, the authors concluded, may serve as a framework “for updating or developing new RSLs to mitigate potential risks of hazardous chemicals to human and environmental health in the packaging industry, specifically food packaging.” The mission of Iowa State University’s Polymer and Food Protection Consortium is to conduct industry-relevant research and to develop solutions focusing on the design, safety, and function of materials for packaging and industrial applications. Read the study, High priority chemicals of concern in industry and regulation: a compilation and analysis of publicly available restricted substance lists.
Latest New World Screwworm case in Mexico. On September 21, Mexico’s National Health for Food Safety and Food Quality Service activated emergency controls after a new case of the dangerous parasite New World Screwworm (NWS) was confirmed in a cow in the border state of Nuevo Leon. The infected cow was in Sabinas Hidalgo, a town about 75 miles from Laredo, Texas, and originated in the state of Veracruz. Mexico previously detected NWS on July 9 in a cow in Veracruz. That discovery has prompted the US government to suspend imports into the US of live Mexican cattle, bison, and horses. Mexico has activated emergency biosecurity controls to limit the further spread of the parasite, pursuant to initiatives announced in August by USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins.
Chapman’s invests more than CAD $200 million to expand ice cream manufacturing in Ontario. Chapman's, Canada's largest ice cream manufacturer, is undertaking a major expansion that involves the addition of 200 new jobs, a 175,000-square-foot facility, and new production lines. The company, which employs over 800 full-time employees, is receiving support for the expansion through a loan of up to $27 million through the Invest Ontario Fund.
Interim stay on ostrich cull granted. On September 24, an interim stay order was issued by a Supreme Court of Canada Justice. This stay temporarily halted the planned destruction of a 400-bird ostrich flock in British Columbia pending the dismissal of the application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, or if leave were to be granted, the final determination of the case. The flock had been subject to a Notice to Dispose in late 2024, citing confirmed cases of avian influenza. In a statement released on September 26, the CFIA confirmed that the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Winnipeg had identified H5N1 in the flock. Whole genome sequencing revealed a novel reassortment of the virus not previously detected in Canada. On the same day the interim stay was granted, a hay-bale wall surrounding the ostriches was on fire. The farm’s co-owner and her daughter were taken into custody for refusing to vacate the property but were released later that day.
Avian flu update.
- With the fall migration, confirmations of H5N1 on US farms are slowly rising. In the 30 days before this writing, more than 585,000 turkeys have been culled in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, and Utah following confirmed H5N1 infections in commercial and backyard flocks. The majority of those birds were in South Dakota, which has become this fall’s US epicenter for avian influenza. South Dakota State Veterinarian Beth Thompson announced that migrating blue-winged teal have been identified as carriers of this season’s virus in that state.
- On September 15, the USDA confirmed the presence of H5N1 in a dairy herd in Nebraska – the first case of avian flu in a Nebraska herd. The herd has been quarantined. Health officials are seeking to determine whether the outbreak arose from a bird-to-cow infection or from an already infected cow brought from another state.
- On September 25, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection confirmed an outbreak of H5N1 in a commercial egg facility in Jefferson County, affecting more than 3 million hens.
- Also in Wisconsin, the International Crane Foundation announced on September 29 that Ducky, a female whooping crane, had died of avian influenza. The bird, part of the foundation's breeding and reintroduction program for this endangered species, would have been released into the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge this month.
- On September 25, the Los Angeles Department of Public Health (LADPH) issued another animal health alert following the deaths of two house cats that had eaten commercially available raw pet food. The cats, from the same household, were indoor only. At this writing, the FDA is investigating the raw food product that was fed to the cats.
- Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply announced on September 29 that the European Union is resuming imports of Brazilian chicken meat products. The reauthorization, formalized in the Official Journal of the European Union, ends a four-month suspension of Brazilian chicken products over concerns about H5N1. Chicken exports to the EU will resume gradually. Products from most of Brazil manufactured starting September 18 may already begin shipping. Products from most of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where this year’s outbreak occurred, began shipping on October 2; shipping of products from facilities within ten kilometers of the outbreak’s epicenter will resume on October 16.
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