The Association of Food and Drug Officials Responds to FDA Food Program Review

Last week's release of the Reagan-Udall Foundation’s FDA Food Program Review Report and its recommendations has been called the first step in aligning ongoing concerns brought forward by stakeholders during the review process and current FDA priorities.  

According to AFDO’s Executive Director Steven Mandernach, the association took a leadership role in encouraging review input from not only its membership but also others in the food safety system. Mandernach says that the report’s recommendations clearly reflect the significant information and testimony that was provided and address most of the concerns shared by the AFDO membership.   

“Commissioner Califf has pledged to bring the country’s food safety program to the forefront and we commend him for taking this action and those that will follow,” Mandernach notes. “We believe he sees the value of engaging all stakeholders in the future just as he did with the operational review process.” 

“While AFDO engages many stakeholder groups, state, local, tribal, and territorial regulatory personnel are our focus as we navigate the road to an integrated food safety system,” says Mandernach. “These specific stakeholders perform a significant number of field inspections, and these recommendations are the beginning of the recognition and stepped-up support for those on the front lines of protecting public health across the country. We strongly agree with the panel’s recommendations on improving information sharing with state and local partners, which improves cooperative relationships with these partners, including funding methods. 

“We were very clear in the specific actions we recommended during the operational evaluation process, from the establishment of a key leadership position responsible for the ‘food’ in the Food and Drug Administration to the creation of a culture focused on collaboration and public health with a sense of urgency to do the right thing for the American public,” Mandernach adds. “Today’s recommendations reflect the comments of the AFDO community and are positive steps to move our food protection system forward. The Reagan-Udall Foundation and its expert review should be thanked and commended for the courage to recommend many bold and transformational options. We are hopeful the Commissioner will demonstrate similar courage.” 

Mandernach further noted that several AFDO recommendations were included as options within the report. He said, “We are looking forward to collabooroating with Commissioner Califf as the FDA begins direct stakeholder engagement and implements transformational change — recognizing the foods program is different than other programs in the FDA organizational structure — by appointing and empowering a strong deputy commissioner for foods and also by leading cultural change within the FDA foods program toward a more public health-centric program.” 

“We do believe that creating a separate agency within HHS for the foods program deserves longer term evaluation and consideration. We also are strongly supportive of the option to create a new center within FDA focused on nutrition, especially with the renewed focus on nutrition in the White House’s National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health.” Mandernach concludes. 

“Recent headlines have pushed the safety of the nation’s food supply to the forefront of the challenges the FDA must address,” Mandernach continues. “These recommendations are the opportunity to renew the public’s and public health system’s faith in the FDA’s leadership role in protecting consumers while stepping up the partnership that is necessary for the nation’s food safety system to be successful.”