This post summarizes recent actions the federal government has taken in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. First, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has updated...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced yesterday two policies to provide flexibility with respect to nutrition labeling requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, the agency committed to work...more
As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis continues to present new questions and challenges, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to update its website to provide additional information and guidance to the...more
In our memo of March 19, we summarized federal government policy identifying the Food and Agriculture and Transportation industries as two of the nation’s 16 Critical Infrastructure Sectors. In The President’s Coronavirus...more
3/20/2020
/ Agribusiness ,
Business Closures ,
Business Interruption ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Farms ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Service Workers ,
Food Supply ,
Operators of Essential Services ,
Restaurant Industry
As the novel coronavirus crisis continues to escalate, state and local governments have begun implementing increasingly aggressive measures, including restrictions on when and which businesses may operate, quarantines,...more
Late yesterday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that due to the COVID-19 pandemic the agency has temporarily postponed all domestic routine surveillance facility inspections. This announcement is not...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it is reopening the comment period on a 2005 proposed rule to establish a set of general principles to use when considering whether to establish, revise, or eliminate...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released the third and final installment of its Draft Guidance to support compliance with the Mitigation Strategies to Protect Food Against Intentional Adulteration (“IA rule”)....more
2/20/2020
/ Corrective Actions ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
FSMA ,
Public Health ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Verification Requirements
On November 6, 2019, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in a Constituent Update that it will continue to exercise enforcement discretion with respect to certain supply-chain program requirements applicable to...more
11/18/2019
/ Enforcement Guidance ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
FSMA ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Verification Requirements
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) recently issued a proposed rule entitled “Laboratory Accreditation for Analyses of Foods” (“Proposed Rule”), which was mandated by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)....more
11/14/2019
/ Accreditation ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
FSMA ,
FSVP ,
Imports ,
Laboratory Developed Tests ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Test Guidelines
On October 21, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held a public meeting to engage stakeholders on the agency’s initiative, “A New Era of Smarter Food Safety,” to build on the advances that have been and are...more
10/25/2019
/ Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
FSMA ,
Health and Safety ,
Innovative Technology ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management
On September 27, 2019 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hosted a public meeting to gather information from stakeholders on changes the agency could make to existing standards of identity (SOIs), particularly changes...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has launched two new online dashboards that track key metrics reflecting the impacts from the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulations. The dashboards are part of...more
10/11/2019
/ CGMP ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Recalls ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
FSMA ,
FSVP ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently published a list of the records that importers are required to develop and maintain under the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) regulation....more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced the launch of an updated version of the Food Defense Plan Builder Version 2.0 (FDPB) to help companies meet the requirements of the final rule “Mitigation Strategies...more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced it will hold a full-day public meeting on October 21, 2019, regarding “A New Era of Smarter Food Safety.” As explained in more detail in this memorandum, as part of...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced it will be holding a full-day public meeting on September 27, 2019, to address “Horizontal Approaches to Food Standards of Identity Modernization.” As explained...more
Two consumer groups have sued the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking to compel the agency to implement the laboratory accreditation provisions in the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Specifically, the...more
8/27/2019
/ Accreditation ,
Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
Foreign Suppliers ,
FSMA ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued the first Warning Letter addressing violations of the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) rule, one of the seven major FDA Food Safety Modernization Act...more
8/16/2019
/ Enforcement Actions ,
Food & Drug Regulations ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Contamination ,
Food Safety ,
Foreign Suppliers ,
FSMA ,
FSVP ,
Imports ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Salmonella ,
Supply Chain ,
Verification Requirements ,
Warning Letters
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 fee rates, which in particular cover the fees for facility reinspections and participation in the Voluntary Qualified Importer Program...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently finalized its “Guidance for Industry: Determining the Number of Employees for Purposes of the ‘Small Business’ Definition in Parts 117 and 507 (CGMP and Preventive...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reached a settlement with the two consumer groups that sued FDA in October 2018 to compel the agency to implement the traceability provisions in the FDA Food Safety Modernization...more
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Acting Commissioner Ned Sharpless, M.D., and Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response Frank Yiannas recently issued a public statement on steps to usher the U.S. into a new era...more
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued Draft Guidance for Industry entitled “Initiation of Voluntary Recalls Under 21 CFR Part 7, Subpart C” (the Draft Guidance). 1/ As FDA Associate Commissioner...more
On April 23, FDA issued draft guidance entitled “Initiation of Voluntary Recalls Under 21 CFR Part 7, Subpart C,” which aims to clarify how firms in a product distribution chain should prepare to facilitate timely initiation...more
4/26/2019
/ Biotechnology ,
Draft Guidance ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Food Safety ,
Food Supply ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Product Recalls ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Strategic Planning