FDA Foods Coalition Launched to Advocate for Proposed Redesign of Human Foods Program

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The FDA Foods Coalition was launched on Oct. 26 to advocate for a modernized, effective foods program at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) focused on preventing foodborne illness outbreaks and other food safety risks and decreasing diet-related chronic diseases. Made up of consumer advocates, food industry representatives, public health groups, and state and local regulators, the coalition will educate policymakers, media and the public about improving the governance of the FDA Human Foods Program.

The coalition said it is supportive of FDA’s proposed redesign of the Human Foods Program and looks forward to working with Commissioner Robert Califf and new Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods Jim Jones to implement these changes and facilitate greater transparency, accountability and meaningful stakeholder engagement.

Many of the organizations in the coalition began working together following FDA’s delayed response to the infant formula crisis and called on Califf to appoint a leader empowered to address the fundamental problems plaguing the agency’s foods program. In response, Califf ordered an external review of the program by the Reagan Udall Foundation, which concluded that FDA’s culture, organizational structure and governance model undermine its effectiveness. Earlier this year, Califf announced plans to adopt many of those recommendations and recently appointed Jim Jones as deputy commissioner of its Human Foods Program.

“Consumers depend on the FDA to be effectively organized and governed to prevent food safety risks and ensure our food is safe,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports and co-chair of the FDA Foods Coalition. “Commissioner Califf has proposed a redesign that will allow the Human Foods Program to carry out its critical mission and make the agency more accountable and transparent. Our coalition supports these changes and believes the implementation of them is critically important to all of the FDA’s food system stakeholders.”

“Industry needs a strong, unified and modernized FDA to facilitate innovation, growth and the production of safe, nutritious foods that are accessible and affordable for all consumers,” said Roberta Wagner, senior vice president of regulatory and scientific affairs at the International Dairy Foods Association and co-chair of the FDA Foods Coalition. “The coalition will continue to advocate that FDA shift away from its traditional reactionary model to a modernized, prevention-oriented oversight model that aligns with industry’s immense efforts to ensure continual improvement and prevent problems from occurring, as exemplified by industry’s ongoing implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Industry values FDA’s oversight role in assuring companies produce safe food every day for American consumers, and we look forward to supporting the agency’s Human Foods Program through this coalition.”

“FDA needs substantial additional resources to strengthen and improve its human food safety and nutrition programs,” said Steven Grossman, executive director of the Alliance for a Stronger FDA. “Maximizing the value of such an investment will require stakeholders and the FDA to address the organizational, cultural and policy challenges that confront food safety. The FDA Foods Coalition is uniquely positioned to achieve this and is a natural complement to the Alliance’s efforts to increase funding.”

In addition to Consumer Reports and the International Dairy Foods Association, the coalition includes the American Frozen Food Institute, Association of Food and Drug Officials, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Consumer Brands Association, Consumer Federation of America, Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Working Group, International Fresh Produce Association, Peanut and Tree Nut Processors Association, STOP Foodborne Illness and Western Growers. The coalition will continue its outreach to other stakeholders that align with this mission.

The FDA Foods Coalition will work with the agency to ensure that FDA’s Human Foods Program:

• Communicates, embraces and promotes a clear and compelling vision, mission and value statement.
• Institutes an organizational structure with a single leader with a clear articulation of roles, responsibilities and accountability and a culture that is well-equipped to sustain leadership transitions.
• Establishes — through the new deputy commissioner position — a management system that fully integrates the Human Foods Program on policy, resource management and field operations and leads a program-wide transformation that prioritizes the shift to a public health prevention culture in both headquarters and field operations.
• Develops and nurtures a culture where regulatory decision-making is focused on consumer safety and public health, rooted in scientific evidence and FDA’s legal framework, and occurs in a timely and predictable way.
• Prioritizes meaningful stakeholder engagement and collaboration in regulatory priority setting and decision making based on science-driven and effective risk management principles, maximum transparency and data sharing.
• Establishes a stronger, more cooperative relationship with state, local and tribal governments, including fulfilling the FSMA vision of a National Integrated Food Safety System.
• Formulates an appropriations strategy that considers stakeholder input and includes a well-defined, prioritized agenda and clarity and transparency on how program funding would be allocated.
• Has authority and resources to ensure that the agency’s Enterprise Modernization initiative meets the operational and data management needs of the Human Foods Program.