Quick bites from around the food safety arena
- The CDC has confirmed nearly 14,000 cases of Cyclospora infections across multiple outbreaks. And, more than 3,000 cases have been added to the total number of patients affected by an outbreak linked to iceberg lettucefrom a Taylor Farms growing operation in Central Mexico. That outbreak, which has resulted in two deaths, has now affected people in 17 states with Maine and Massachusetts being the latest additions to that list.
- On Tuesday, the acting Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Kyle Diamantas, urged Americans to feel confident about eating fresh produce, despite the ongoing outbreaks. Diamantas made the remarks as the FDA released non-binding guidance with information for manufacturers and processors of ready-to-eat produce to help them comply with federal law.
- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced measures aimed at closing a loophole in federal oversight of food additives known as ‘generally recognized as safe’ (GRAS) and at defining ultra-processed foods. Interest groups pointed out that both measures require further action to finalize and implement.
- Amnesty International is urging the Indonesian government to suspend a free school meals program because of thousands of reported cases of food poisoning. According to data from the Indonesian Education Monitoring Network, about 37,000 schoolchildren in the Free Nutritious Meal program have suffered food poisoning since January 2025. Of that total, some 9,000 cases occurred between January and May 2026.
- Research from the University of Portsmouth estimates that food fraud costs the United Kingdom economy between £400 million ($540 million) and £2 billion ($2.7 billion) annually. About three-quarters of that cost comes from direct replacement of legitimate products with fraudulent alternatives, such marketing smoked salmon as Scottish when it was sourced from Norway. This week, the Food Standards Agency’s National Food Crime Unit arrested one man during an investigation into the sale of frozen food products with fraudulent labels and no traceability.
Today’s Topic: RFK Jr.
A lot of news sure has been happening under the “Make American Healthy Again” banner. It isn’t entirely working out as promised, but it’s close enough to be, well, historic.
The latest is reform of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) practice of allowing food makers to use ingredients with self-declarations that they are “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS).