Beltway Beat

RFK Jr. as Health Secretary? What the food industry expect.

By Food Safety Tech Staff, Rick Biros
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1/30/2025. Editor’s update of original article from 11/15/2024. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. battled his way through his second Senate confirmation hearing. According to the NY Times, Kennedy defended his views on vaccination during a raucous three-hour session on Thursday that featured shouting matches, angry accusations and a senator in tears, and also exposed the deep misgivings of a key Republican who could hold Mr. Kennedy’s future in his hands. The Senate hearings focused Mr. Kennedy’s views on vaccination did not touch on his food and agriculture ideas and plans.

Original article from 11/15/2024: According to the Wall Street Journal, President-elect Donald Trump is planning to nominate environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to serve as Health and Human Services secretary. Kennedy’s nomination was not a surprise. Last month, Kennedy said Trump had promised him control of the department and its many subagencies, which include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), and others. Trump himself pledged during the campaign to let Kennedy “go wild on health.”

To put things into context, the mission of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) according to it’s website is to enhance the health and well-being of all Americans, by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services. FDA is an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services and consists of nine Center-level organizations and thirteen Headquarter (HQ) Offices including the newly reorganized Human Foods Program headed up by Jim Jones.

Kennedy’s website, Make America Healthy Again states that Kennedy has spent nearly 40 years fighting corrupt corporations and government agencies. During his tenure at RiverKeeper, he successfully sued dozens of municipalities to force compliance with the Clean Water Act. He won cases against corporate giants, including a suit against General Electric for toxic runoff from its corporate jet hangar and a court order against ExxonMobil mandating they clean up tens of millions of gallons of spilled oil in Brooklyn, NY. As of Dec 2022, the Monsanto lawsuits to which Kennedy has devoted much of the past decade have yielded $11 Billion for farmers, migrant workers, day laborers, and families exposed to the pesticide RoundUp.

If approved, what can the food industry expect from Kennedy?

According to Make America Healthy Again, Kennedy sees Big Pharma and Big Agriculture having an undue influence on what Americans eat and how they manage their health over time.

Kennedy says the public health establishment is too focused on infectious diseases and wants to redirect resources toward issues he characterizes as the chronic disease epidemic, including obesity, diabetes, autism and mental illnesses. He blames them on corporations including food producers using harmful pesticides and additives. He traces America’s high levels of chronic disease to the widespread availability of highly processed, non-nutritious food, which he blames in part on a broken agriculture policy.

Some of his food and agriculture ideas plans share the same pseudoscience as Kennedy’s views on vaccines. Kennedy recently posted on social media that the FDA had “waged a war on public health” by “aggressive suppression” of Americans’ access to raw milk, despite raw milk’s risk of causing life-threatening diarrheal diseases and now, bird flu,

Kennedy has labeled Trump’s fast food diet as “poison” and wants to reduce the amount of ultra-processed food in the American food supply. In recent interviews, Kennedy has suggested clearing out “entire departments” at FDA, including the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.

However, if Kennedy wants to restrict the use of already-approved food additives, he needs more resources — not fewer: The process involves rigorous reviews of data, issuing public warnings, and actively monitoring the food supply. If Kennedy succeeded in closing the food safety office, that would reduce the number of people who could be dedicated to the job.

The European culture regarding food additives is generally the additive needs to be proven safe before allowed into the supply chain. Conversely, FDA’s position for years has been the additive is allowed to be used unless it has been proven harmful. Two opposite ways of regulating. Kennedy’s position on additives might move the U.S. to be more like the E.U.

Other actions could be taken by the Trump administration to reduce the amount of ultra-processed food in the American food supply, but many of them would be taken outside of HHS. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) sets the guidelines that govern school lunch programs, which means much of what children eat is determined by that agency; Trump has not yet nominated a USDA commissioner. The USDA is also primarily responsible for overseeing farming, another industry Kennedy has heavily criticized throughout his public career and pledged to target if he were to take a role in the federal government. He would likely need to work with the USDA to follow through.

One Agency?

Kennedy is correct that food safety regulation in the US is currently a mess, says David Acheson, President of TAG. Meat, poultry, and egg plants are inspected daily under the auspices of the USDA, while every other kind of food production facility — including the farms whose produce is responsible for most of the food-borne illness in the US and the nation’s countless other industrial food manufacturers — are inspected by FDA inspectors at most once a year.

It would make far more sense to unify these functions under one agency and harmonize the frequency of food production facility inspections so none are falling through the cracks. That is the kind of organizational shake-up that could actually make a difference.

The concept of one agency is not new according to Frank Yiannas, former Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Yiannas, in his closing keynote presentation at last month’s Food Safety Consortium Conference said the idea has been proposed by the Obama and the previous Trump administration, however, it requires Congress to approve the combination of the two agencies.

It remains to be seen what impact Kennedy’s proposals will have on the food industry but they bear little resemblance to those of prior Republican administrations, which have typically favored cutting regulations, not increasing them.

 

STOP Foodborne Illness
Beltway Beat

Sandra Eskin leaves USDA for STOP Foodborne Illness as the new CEO, officially Leading the Nonprofit on Feb. 24

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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STOP Foodborne Illness

 Stop Foodborne Illness (STOP), a national public health nonprofit dedicated to preventing foodborne illness and advocating for stronger food safety policies, announces that Sandra Eskin will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer on February 24, 2025.

Eskin, a respected leader in food safety, most recently at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), has a long track record of food safety advocacy. Throughout her career, Eskin has worked on a broad range of food safety, consumer protection, and public policy issues.

“I am honored and excited to become the CEO of Stop Foodborne Illness,” said Eskin. “This organization has played a major role in improving the safety of the food supply, and I look forward to helping STOP expand its efforts to protect American families from preventable foodborne illnesses.”

Eskin and Mettler
Sandra Eskin, formally of USDA and Erik Mettler of FDA co-presenting at the Food Safety Consortium

Eskin succeeds Mitzi Baum, who has been STOP CEO since 2019. “Sandra has long been a nationally respected food safety advocate and leader,” said Mary McGonigle Martin and Gillian Kelleher, STOP’s Board of Directors Co-Chairs.

Eskin’s leadership will be crucial in building upon the momentum created by Baum, who is stepping down after six years as CEO. Baum expanded STOP’s programs, raised its national profile, and developed initiatives with industry and government to improve food safety nationwide.

The co-chairs added, “It is difficult to say goodbye to Mitzi, but we know STOP’s future is in superbly capable hands with Sandra.”

Jeff Almer, food safety advocate and STOP constituent, adds his praise for Eskin. “My mother, a two time cancer survivor, was one of nine people who died in the Salmonella outbreak in 2009 due to tainted peanut butter. I know how important it is to have strong, clear food safety leadership. Sandra has always been a tireless champion for consumer protection. I am confident she’ll take STOP to new heights in the fight to end foodborne illness.”

At the USDA, Eskin held several leadership positions including Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety and Deputy Under Secretary. Before joining USDA, Eskin spent 12 years as the Project Director for Food Safety at The Pew Charitable Trusts, advocating for food safety reform and the passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), and previously as the Deputy Director of the Produce Safety Project at Georgetown University.  She has also served on several federal advisory committees, providing strategic policy advice related to foodborne illness surveillance, consumer information on prescription drugs, and food safety.  Eskin holds a J.D. from UC Law-San Francisco (formerly Hastings College of the Law) and a B.A. from Brown University.

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Beltway Beat

Blumenthal, Smith, Booker, & Durbin Call Out FDA for Proposed Cuts to State & Local Food Safety Programs

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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In a press release on U.S. Senator’s  Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) website, he and fellow Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Dick Durbin (D-IL) wrote to Jim Jones, Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), seeking an explanation regarding the agency’s plans to significantly reduce funding for state and local food safety programs. These programs perform a majority of food inspections reported by the FDA, including processing facility inspections, produce safety inspections, and retail food inspections.

“We are concerned that these proposed cuts will undo years of progress toward establishing a truly integrated food safety system,” wrote the Senators. “State budgets across the country are already stretched thin, these cuts would deleteriously impact our nation’s food safety system as some state programs inevitably scale back or are eliminated completely.”

“While we appreciate that you may need to occasionally reallocate resources based on programmatic needs, we are concerned that the full impact of the proposed cuts to state and local programs has not been taken into account and that the agency has failed to fully consider alternative options,” the Senators continued.

The full text of the letter can be found here

 

Jose Emilio Esteban, Ph.D.
Beltway Beat

Dr. Emilio Esteban leaves USDA for Mérieux NutriSciences as CSO and Head of the Global Analytical Hub.

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Jose Emilio Esteban, Ph.D.

Mérieux NutriSciences announced the appointment of Dr. Emilio Esteban as Chief Scientific Officer for its North America division, and Head of its Global Analytical Hub.

In a press release, the company stated that Dr. Esteban brings remarkable experience to Mérieux NutriSciences with his proven professional background in food safety and public health. In this role, he will work to further strengthen Mérieux NutriSciences’ status as a global leader in food science and safety, and to drive the organization’s strategy to deliver globally cutting-edge analytical services.

Over the last 22 years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Dr. Esteban has held a variety of leadership roles, most recently serving as Undersecretary overseeing the Food Safety mission. Prior to that, Dr. Esteban worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as an epidemiologist and Assistant Director for Public Health in its Food Safety Office. He has served on the executive board of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) and chaired the Codex Alimentarius Commission.

Dr. Esteban received a doctorate in veterinary medicine from Mexico’s Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, a Master of Business Administration from the Panamerican Institute, as well as a Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and a doctorate in epidemiology from the University of California at Davis.

Food Safety Consortium with AFFI 2024 logo
Beltway Beat

AFFI and Food Safety Tech announces 2025 Food Safety Consortium program committee, dates and Call For Abstracts

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Food Safety Consortium with AFFI 2024 logo

Food Safety Tech and the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) are excited to announce that the 2025 Food Safety Consortium will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Virginia, from October 19-21. The 2025 event will focus on the convergence of policy, science, and best practices. With the conference being held near Washington, D.C., this year will place a renewed emphasis on policy discussions, reflecting the growing need to address regulatory and legislative issues. The program will also prioritize the sharing of best practices, offering attendees the chance to learn from one another and engage in collaborative problem-solving on hot-button issues.

The 2025 conference will continue the Consortium’s mission to:

  • Facilitate the exchange of scientific information and best practices among food safety professionals.
  • Address current challenges and advancements in food safety, technology, and compliance.
  • Promote collaboration between industry, academia, and regulatory bodies to enhance public health outcomes.

“The 2025 Consortium will build upon the success of previous events, which have featured high-level panel discussions, educational presentations, and pre-conference workshops.” said Rick Biros, Content Director and Founder of Food Safety Tech.

Notably, past FDA keynote speakers have included Jim Jones, Mike Taylor, Steve Ostroff, Frank Yiannas, and Erik Mettler, supporting the FDA’s industry outreach objectives to the food and beverage industry. In 2024, James “Jim” Jones, Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods at the FDA, was the keynote speaker. His participation was particularly significant, as the Food Safety Consortium was one of the first conferences following the agency’s reorganization where Mr. Jones addressed the food industry. “In 2025, we plan to include FDA leadership in the program. Having the conference in the Washington DC area helps facilitate greater accessibility for FDA officials, other government representatives such as those from USDA and DHS, as well as industry associations.” Biros adds.

Guiding the 2025 program is a newly formed committee that includes:

  • Jason P. Bashura, MPH, RS, PepsiCo R&D, Global Food Safety & Quality Assurance, Sr. Manager, Global Food Defense, PepsiCo
  • Rick Biros, Content Director & Publisher, Food Safety Tech (Committee Co-Chairperson)
  • Erika Blickem, Director of Food Safety, J.R. Simplot Company, Inc.
  • Benjamin Chapman, Ph.D., Department Head, Professor, Food Safety Specialist, Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences, North Carolina State University, NC State Extension
  • Byron D. Chaves, PhD., Associate Professor & Food Safety Extension Specialist, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • Donna Garren, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, Science & Policy, American Frozen Food Institute (Committee Co-Chairperson)
  • Melody Ge, Sr. Director, Food Safety & Quality Operations, TreeHouse Foods, Inc.
  • Sanjay Gummalla, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Scientific Affairs, American Frozen Food Institute
  • David Hatch, Vice President, Digital Solutions Marketing, Neogen
  • Jill Hoffman, Senior Director, Food Safety and Quality, B&G Foods, Inc.
  • Justyce Jedlicka, NA Commercial Applications – Food & Beverage Regulatory, Science & Lab Solutions,  BioMonitoring, MilliporeSigma
  • Barbara C. Kowalcyk, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Director of Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security, Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University
  • Jeff Lucas, Technical Director, Mèrieux NutriSciences
  • Michael L Rybolt, Ph.D., Sr. Vice President, Food Safety & Quality Assurance, Tyson Foods

Donna Garren, Executive Vice President of Science & Policy at AFFI, who co-chairs the program committee, commented, “The committee’s collective expertise in food safety and leadership will be essential in shaping the conference program. The Consortium has always been a key platform for the convergence of policy, science, and best practices, and in 2025, we will ensure that policy discussions take center stage, especially given the proximity to Washington, D.C. AFFI’s work is always grounded in science, and our commitment to evidence-based solutions drives everything we do. This conference will continue to reflect that focus while fostering collaboration across all sectors of the food safety ecosystem.

Food Safety Tech and AFFI are requesting presentation and panel discussion abstracts for consideration to be presented during the Food Safety Consortium Conference, Oct. 19-21, 2025, Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington VA.

Submit Your Abstract    Abstract Submissions are due by February 21

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Beltway Beat

FDA bans red dye No. 3 from food and beverages

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The FDA announced today that it is revoking the authorization for the use of FD&C Red No. 3 as a matter of law, based on the Delaney Clause of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). The FDA is amending its color additive regulations to no longer allow for the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and ingested drugs in response to a 2022 color additive petition. The petition requested the agency review whether the Delaney Clause applied and cited, among other data and information, two studies that showed cancer in laboratory male rats exposed to high levels of FD&C Red No. 3 due to a rat specific hormonal mechanism. The way that FD&C Red No. 3 causes cancer in male rats does not occur in humans. Relevant exposure levels to FD&C Red No. 3 for humans are typically much lower than those that cause the effects shown in male rats. Studies in other animals and in humans did not show these effects; claims that the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and in ingested drugs puts people at risk are not supported by the available scientific information.

The Delaney Clause, enacted in 1960 as part of the Color Additives Amendment to the FD&C Act, prohibits FDA authorization of a food additive or color additive if it has been found to induce cancer in humans or animals. This is not the first time the agency revoked an authorization based on the Delaney Clause. For example, in 2018, the FDA revoked the authorization for certain synthetic flavors based on the Delaney Clause in response to a food additive petition.

Food and beverage manufacturers who use FD&C Red No. 3 in their products will have until January 15, 2027 to reformulate their products. Other countries still currently allow for certain uses of FD&C Red No. 3 (called erythrosine in other countries). However, foods imported to the U.S. must comply with U.S. requirements.

Beltway Beat

FDA Proposes Requiring At-a-Glance Nutrition Information on the Front of Packaged Foods

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is announcing an important step to provide nutrition information to consumers by proposing to require a front-of-package (FOP) nutrition label for most packaged foods. This proposal plays a key role in the agency’s nutrition priorities, which are part of a government-wide effort in combatting the nation’s chronic disease crisis. If finalized, the proposal would give consumers readily visible information about a food’s saturated fat, sodium and added sugars content—three nutrients directly linked with chronic diseases when consumed in excess.

The proposed FOP nutrition label, also referred to as the “Nutrition Info box,” provides information on saturated fat, sodium and added sugars content in a simple format showing whether the food has “Low,” “Med” or “High” levels of these nutrients. It complements the FDA’s iconic Nutrition Facts label, which gives consumers more detailed information about the nutrients in their food.

The proposed rule, if finalized, would require food manufacturers to add a Nutrition Info box to most packaged food products three years after the final rule’s effective date for businesses with $10 million or more in annual food sales and four years after the final rule’s effective date for businesses with less than $10 million in annual food sales.

Comments on the proposed rule can be submitted electronically to http://www.regulations.gov by May 16, 2025.

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Beltway Beat

FDA’s Guidance for Industry: Action Levels for Lead in Processed Food Intended for Babies and Young Children

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on its website the availability of a final guidance for industry entitled “Action Levels for Lead in Processed Food Intended for Babies and Young Children.” The guidance establishes action levels for lead in certain processed foods intended for babies and young children less than 2 years old. The guidance is intended to set achievable action levels that will help further reduce lead in the food supply.

In accordance with § 109.6 (21 CFR 109.6), this guidance establishes the following action levels for lead in processed food intended for babies and young children less than 2 years old:

  • 10 parts per billion (ppb) for fruits, vegetables (excluding single-ingredient root vegetables), mixtures (including grain- and meat-based mixtures), yogurts, custards/puddings, and single-ingredient meats
  • 20 ppb for single-ingredient root vegetables; and 20 ppb for dry infant cereals

Consistent with § 109.6(d), these action levels reflect levels of lead at which FDA may regard the food as adulterated within the meaning of section 402(a)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 342(a)(1)). FDA said it intends to consider these action levels, in addition to other factors, when considering whether to bring enforcement action in a particular case.

Beltway Beat

First Bird Flu Death in U.S. Reported in Louisiana

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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The news comes on the heels of a report that the patient had carried mutations that might help the virus infect people more easily.

This article is in follow up to the Dec. 30 article, Genetic Sequences of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Viruses Identified in a Person in Louisiana

The New York Times reported that a Louisiana patient who had been hospitalized with severe bird flu has died, the first such fatality in the United States, state health officials.

The patient was older than 65 and had underlying medical conditions, the officials said. The individual became infected with the bird flu virus, H5N1, after exposure to a backyard flock and wild birds.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said late last month that the mutations were not present in virus samples taken from the backyard flock, suggesting that they developed in the patient as the illness progressed.

One of the mutations was also present in virus sampled from a 13-year-old Canadian girl who was hospitalized and required respiratory support. She has since recovered.

Both patients carried a version of the virus that is circulating in wild birds, distinct from the one causing the outbreak in dairy cattle.

SmartSense Names Industry Leader Stefanie Miller to Advisory Board

Miller’s appointment brings extensive expertise in strategic planning, R&D, marketing and other core business functions built over her tenure at global food and beverage brands, including The Coca-Cola Company and Kellogg Company.

SmartSense by Digi®, part of Digi International announced the appointment of Stefanie Miller, Managing Director of Category Strategy and Growth at Kellanova Europe, to its Food Service Advisory Board, which focuses on consumer packaged goods (CPG) safety. Miller joins a distinguished group of leaders from Giant Eagle, Inc., Schnuck Markets, Inc., NewRoad Capital Partners, Nutrition Core Solutions, and Clipper Advisory Group.

“I’m honored to join the Food Service Advisory Board and help drive dedication to innovation and excellence,” said Miller. “SmartSense has an unwavering commitment to improving food service and reducing CPG risks through innovative technology, a more important mission than ever with foodborne illnesses and recalls spread throughout the supply chain seemingly more prevalent than ever. By working alongside professionals from across the food service sector, I am eager to contribute to elevating food manufacturing and supply chain safety standards and enriching the quality of service for SmartSense customers.”

Miller’s appointment brings extensive expertise in strategic planning, R&D, marketing and other core business functions built over her tenure at global food and beverage brands, including The Coca-Cola Company and Kellogg Company.

“An incredibly valuable addition to our Food Service Advisory Board, Stefanie brings industry experience that will help foster a more strategic path forward for SmartSense food service solutions,” said Guy Yehiav, President of SmartSense by Digi. “Her pioneering approach to tackling industry challenges across diverse sectors and various leadership roles in food manufacturing will continue to inspire innovative solutions, foster collaboration, and set new standards for risk management.”

Miller joined the SmartSense Food Service Advisory Board on Nov 1, 2024, further advancing the company’s mission to empower food service organizations to safeguard consumer outcomes through advanced IoT technology