Lessons Learned: A Government Litigation Case Study
[Podcast] Food for Thought and Thoughts on Food: What to Expect in 2023
On April 22, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced coming FDA actions aiming “to phase out all petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the nation’s food supply” and to prompt the food industry...more
In March 2025, a new settlement was reached in a class action suit against several chicken processors accused of conspiring to reduce supply and raise the price of chicken. This most recent settlement is scheduled for a...more
This regular publication by DLA Piper lawyers focuses on helping clients navigate the ever-changing business, legal, and regulatory landscape....more
This regular publication by DLA Piper lawyers focuses on helping clients navigate the ever-changing business, legal, and regulatory landscape. USDA extends comment period on new salmonella rule for poultry....more
On October 15, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor released expanded guidance for OSHA inspections of employers in the animal slaughtering and processing industry. This guidance supersedes previous guidance issued in 2015,...more
Imagine this: you’ve got a weekend BBQ lined up with friends, and you’re ready to impress with mouthwatering steaks and chicken wings. You head to the supermarket, excited to pick the best cuts, but as you browse the meat and...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA's) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued updated guidance on substantiating animal-raising and environment-related labeling claims on meat and poultry products. In the...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) (collectively, the Agency) on Aug. 7, 2024, issued a proposed rule aimed at reducing Salmonella contamination in raw poultry products...more
Meat and poultry producers (MPP) have a unique opportunity to normalize costs anticipated for new EPA wastewater treatment requirements. The requirements appeared publicly for the first time in a pre-publication version of...more
As of June 21, 2023, two food companies have received a grant of inspection from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for their cell-cultivated chicken. This means the two companies, GOOD Meat (a division of Eat Just,...more
Recently, the United States General Accounting Office (GAO), which is a nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch, took on oversight of the executive branch agency, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). In...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) issued Directive 7800.1 on June 21, 2023, providing further insight into the agency’s inspection and verification activities for the...more
The United States Department of Agriculture has issued a proposed rule expanding protections for livestock and poultry farmers under the Packers and Stockyards Act. The proposal would affect contracts between poultry...more
On May 26, 2022, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a long-anticipated proposed rule on performance-based poultry grower compensation, commonly called the “tournament system.” The proposal would...more
We’ve written before about the growing trend of “ethical sourcing” or “ethical production” class actions, which challenge manufacturers’ claims (or nondisclosures) about the humane (or inhumane) way their ingredients or...more
In response to an industry petition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend the poultry products inspection regulations to designate avian leukosis as a trimmable...more
USDA and DOJ have announced shared principles to drive antitrust enforcement in the meat and poultry supply chains. On January 3, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and Attorney General Merrick...more
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has partially granted a Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) petition regarding nitrate/nitrite claims on meat and poultry products produced using substances that...more
Introduction: Meat Alternatives and Cultured Meat - Conventional meat production has been implicated in environmental damage, the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria, and increasing emission of greenhouse gasses....more
In the midst of the pandemic, meat processing facilities have struggled to meet demand while protecting employees. Governmental regulations, orders and guidelines often have seemed to be inconsistent with one another. Even...more
3-D biomeat: Is it finger-lickin’ good? Biomeat, a.k.a., cultured or cell-based meat, is an emerging area of food science that food manufacturers, food retailers, and restaurant chains are currently monitoring as consumers...more
Continuing in its role as something of an anomaly in the South, North Carolina continues to try to balance scientific and health data, political pressure, an increasing COVID-19 infection rate, and recent poultry plant...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Last week, the President issued an Executive Order under the Defense Production Act of 1950 to protect the continued operation of the nation’s meat and poultry processors during the current COVID-19...more
Administration Issues Meat-Packing Executive Order Falling Short of Original Plan. On April 28, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled “Executive Order on Delegating Authority under the DPA with Respect to Food...more