QA Exclusive: Food Safety Leaders React to Jim Jones’ Departure, FDA Layoffs

Last week’s news of Jim Jones’ resignation from his position as deputy commissioner for human foods at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) following the Trump administration’s layoffs of 89 staffers in the agency’s food division has sparked concerns about the future of food safety in the United States, according to various stakeholders interviewed by QA magazine.

The resignation and layoffs will likely have profound consequences for the food safety industry, said Francine Shaw, CEO and founder of Savvy Food Safety.

“Fewer skilled personnel in the already vulnerable Human Foods Program will be a detriment to the FDA's capacity to conduct comprehensive reviews of food ingredients and enforce safety regulations,” she said. “This lack of oversight is very concerning, given that in 2024, recalls due to Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli surged by 41% compared to 2023. In 2024, more people in the U.S. fell ill from contaminated food, and the number of hospitalizations and deaths doubled. The increasing consumer demand for stricter food safety measures makes this situation even more problematic.”

Jones, whom the FDA brought on nearly a year and a half ago to lead the charge in setting and advancing priorities for a unified Human Foods Program, resigned Feb. 17 in a letter to Acting FDA Commissioner Sara Brenner, citing “indiscriminate” cuts to FDA staff.

“I was looking forward to working to pursue the department’s agenda of improving the health of Americans by reducing diet-related chronic disease and risks from chemicals in food,” Jones wrote in the letter, which was obtained by Bloomberg.

He said it would be “fruitless” for him to continue in his role given the Trump administration’s “disdain for the very people” needed to make these changes.

Staffers laid off included employees with “highly technical expertise in nutrition, infant formula, food safety response,” according to the letter, including 10 staffers that review potentially unsafe ingredients in food.

The FDA has not responded to QA’s request for further information on Jones’ departure or the Human Foods Program layoffs.

INDUSTRY REACTIONS: FROM HELPLESS TO HOPEFUL. Darin Detwiler, QA contributing editor, food safety advocate and associate professor of food policy at Northeastern University, said the news made him feel helpless for the first time since 1993, when his 16-month-old son Riley died from an E. coli infection originating from Jack in the Box beef patties.

“Food safety is not a privilege — it is a basic human need and a right,” said Detwiler. “And it should never, ever be a political afterthought. For the first time in 32 years, I feel powerless, as we have lost momentum and key voices in this fight for safer food.”

Jones was the FDA’s first deputy commissioner for human foods, overseeing the largest reorganization in the agency’s modern history. His resignation and the Human Foods Program layoffs are a direct setback to food safety reforms that were years in the making, said Detwiler.

“The FDA was finally on a path toward meaningful reform,” he said. “But leadership changes, combined with indiscriminate staffing cuts, cripple the very momentum needed to implement those reforms. The removal of technical experts in food safety, nutrition and outbreak response leaves dangerous gaps in oversight. With fewer regulators in place, we are looking at slower recalls, weaker enforcement and a rollback of public health protections — at a time when foodborne illness outbreaks are already rising.”

Detwiler pointed to last year’s deadly Boar’s Head Listeria outbreak and Taylor Farms E. coli outbreak as reminders of why the need for food safety reform is so urgent.

“These are not isolated incidents,” he said. “These are predictable failures — the result of a food safety system that reacts instead of prevents. And now, with fewer experts at the FDA, the ability to prevent these outbreaks before they happen has been further weakened.”

The FDA was already low on manpower to investigate outbreaks, said Bill Marler, longtime foodborne illness lawyer and managing partner at Marler Clark.

“The reality is that there weren’t enough people in the food space at FDA to begin with,” he said. “We need more inspectors, not less inspectors. You need more people paying attention to all aspects of food safety.”

Marler said the news of Jones’ departure and the FDA layoffs left him stunned.

“I was surprised Jones resigned in the way he did, but I think he’s done the honorable thing,” said Marler. “We all should be proud of people who stick up for ethics and try to do the right thing. I hope he lands well, because a lot of people wouldn’t have done that.”

Larry Keener, president and CEO of International Product Safety Consultants, warned that the loss of institutional knowledge at the FDA could impact public health negatively.

“I think in the short term, we’re going to lose ground,” said Keener. “And then, of course, we’re going to have to pay to make up that ground at some point if we want to continue to be the leader in having the safest food supply in the world.”

Steven Mandernach, executive director of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), said Jones' resignation marked a loss for FDA, but he expressed hope for the future of the agency.

“While it’s a loss for the agency, a new leader in the Human Foods Program may have the opportunity and freedom to further reshape it in a manner that streamlines performance in the most efficient means possible,” he said.

Ultimately, consumers will pay the price for the elimination of professionals who work to provide a safe food supply, said Mitzi Baum, CEO of the nonprofit public health organization Stop Foodborne Illness.

“Jim Jones' resignation is yet another blow to public health,” she said. “Mr. Jones was brought in to lead the new Human Foods Program through a difficult structural change to provide better safety for food. It was a mammoth undertaking, but with patience and wisdom, he made the changes necessary. Jim Jones was not a bureaucrat but a natural leader with the technical expertise needed to help make America healthy again.”

MAKING AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN. Changes within the FDA under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s appointment as Secretary of Health and Human Services may cause a shift in the agency's priorities regarding food safety, said Shaw.

“While the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ (MAHA) agenda emphasizes the need for rigorous safety evaluations, the resignation of key figures like Mr. Jones and further budget cuts raise concerns about implementing meaningful reforms,” she said. “These developments could hinder progress in addressing food safety concerns, eroding consumer confidence in food products and public health. The industry must advocate for a renewed focus on safety and regulatory efficacy to ensure better health outcomes for consumers.”

Marler said that with Jones’ background and interest in chemicals in the food supply, he could have been an ally to Kennedy Jr.’s MAHA movement.

“But when they come in and willy-nilly whack people based on the time that they’ve been there — one of my friends at the CDC said it’s like cutting with a sharp razor with a blindfold. It’s not a very useful way of getting rid of people. Some of the people are probably the best and the brightest, fresh out of school. If it’s really about cutting waste, fraud and abuse, there’s probably a different way of doing that than just cutting everyone who’s easy to cut because they don’t have longstanding employment.”

The mission of “making America healthy again” must begin with safe and nutritious food, said Baum.

“The safety of food cannot be overlooked when we encourage individuals to consume more fresh produce to combat chronic diseases and obesity,” she said. “Consumer advocates will continue to advocate for better food safety for everyone who eats.”

In response to the FDA layoffs, a coalition of consumer, industry and public health stakeholder groups issued the following statement.

“Ensuring the safety of our nation's food supply is a shared responsibility,” the coalition said. “Food companies are committed to producing safe products. Maintaining safe, accessible and affordable food is a fundamental public health priority and a key component of the Make America Healthy Again platform. An under-resourced food safety agency could jeopardize Secretary Kennedy’s stated objectives to improve nutrition and ingredient safety for children and adults. Adequate resources are critical not only for outbreak response but also for developing and updating food safety standards, providing science-based industry guidance and ensuring a well-trained federal-state inspection force to protect the integrity of our food system.”

The statement was signed by Marler; Detwiler; food safety consultant Jennifer McEntire; American Frozen Food Institute; Association of Food and Drug Officials; Association of Public Health Laboratories; Center for Science in the Public Interest; Consumer Brands Association; Consumer Federation of America; Consumer Reports; Council for Responsible Nutrition; Global Cold Chain Alliance; Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security, George Washington University; International Dairy Foods Association; and STOP Foodborne Illness.

JONES’ LEGACY. During his tenure at the FDA, Jones prioritized food safety, chemical safety, innovative food products and nutrition.

His efforts were “crucial in enhancing oversight of food chemicals,” said Shaw, resulting in a ban on red dye No. 3 in food.

“AFDO acknowledges former Deputy Commissioner Jim Jones’ work on the FDA reorganization and strong commitment to strengthening chemical safety,” said Mandernach. “His decades of public service are greatly appreciated.”

Prior to joining the FDA, Jones spent 30 years working at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), primarily as a pesticide regulator. He served on the Reagan Udall Foundation’s Independent Expert Panel for Foods, which submitted a report on the operational evaluation of the FDA’s Human Foods Program to the agency in December 2022.

Read QA’s 2024 Q&A with Jones here.