FDA Withdraws Proposals to Ban Antibiotics in Animal Feed

Maryn McKenna wrote in Wired, “News: FDA Won’t Act Against Ag Antibiotic Use,” about the FDA’s withdrawal of two 1977 proposals to withdraw certain approved uses of penicillin and tetracyclines in animal feeds because of the concerns over antibiotic resistant bacteria:

With no notice other than a holiday-eve posting in the Federal Register, the US Food and Drug Administration has reneged on its long-stated intention to compel large-scale agriculture to curb over-use of agricultural antibiotics, which it had planned to do by reversing its approval for putting penicillin and tetracyclines in feed….

FDA represents this move as a change in tactics because the agency lacks the resources to move forward with a regulatory ban. Instead, the FDA is hoping for voluntary reductions in risky uses of antibiotics in animal feed. In the Federal Register posting, the agency states, “FDA is optimistic that its proposed strategy to achieve the judicious use of all medically important antimicrobials, as set out in draft [guidance document], will be successful . . .”  Perhaps after 34 years of failure, a new FDA strategy is needed.

Are Genetically Engineered Foods "Natural"?

A lawsuit claiming misleading advertising, unfair competition, and breach of express warranty has been filed in California against Frito-Lay chips advertised as “All Natural ingredients” while allegedly “made from genetically modified plants and organisms.”  

Gengo v. Frito-Lay N. Am., Inc., No. 11-10322 (U.S. Dist. Ct., C.D. Cal., filed December 14, 2011).

Neal Fortin is the author of Food Regulation: Law, Science, Policy, and Practice, and he is Professor and Director of the Michigan State University Institute for Food Laws and Regulations, where he teaches online courses in Food Regulation in the United States, International Food Law, and Codex Alimentarius. 

Vulnerabilities in FDA’S Oversight of State Food Facility Inspections

Vulnerabilities in FDA’S Oversight of State Food Facility Inspections, an Office of Inspector General (OIG) report released December 2011, identifies significant weaknesses in FDA's oversight of state food inspections on which FDA increasingly relies. In eight States, FDA failed to ensure that the required number of inspections was completed, and FDA paid for many inspections that were incomplete.

In addition, FDA did not ensure that all inspections were properly classified or that all inspection violations were remedied. FDA failed to complete the required number of audits in one-third of the States with inspection contracts (14 of 41 states). Additionally, the audits in 10 States revealed systemic problems that needed to be corrected; however, FDA initiated corrective action in only 4 of these 10 States.

Neal Fortin is the author of Food Regulation: Law, Science, Policy, and Practice, and he is Professor and Director of the Michigan State University Institute for Food Laws and Regulations, where he teaches online courses in Food Regulation in the United States, International Food Law, and Codex Alimentarius.