Opinion
If you enjoyed a slice of cherry pie over the holidays, chances are you weren’t aware of the tyranny this delicious dessert suffers under, and the 15-year effort to unleash the poor, huddled cherries
Brian Ronholm is the Director of Food Policy for Consumer Reports. He leads CR’s advocacy efforts to advance a safe and healthy food system. Brian brings deep legislative and regulatory experience in food policy to CR. Ronholm leverages his experience as the former deputy under secretary of food safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He specializes in food safety regulation and policy, and provides clients with strategic advice on navigating regulatory challenges in the food and agriculture space. During his time at USDA, Ronholm developed strategic frameworks and engaged in outreach activities to advance FSIS policies and initiatives impacting the meat, poultry, and processed egg industries.
If you enjoyed a slice of cherry pie over the holidays, chances are you weren’t aware of the tyranny this delicious dessert suffers under, and the 15-year effort to unleash the poor, huddled cherries
In his welcoming remarks at the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) conference last week, Peter Freedman, managing director of the Consumer Goods Forum, which convenes the annual conference, asserted that building consumer trust is…
Continue Reading Discussions on building consumer trust probably should involve consumers
During the recent Good Food Institute conference on cell-cultured meat, an industry executive remarked that he tries to stay away from politics and focus on his company and developing the technology. That certainly is…
Continue Reading There’s room on the hamburger bun for cell-cultured meat and politics
The key to understanding the complexities in the debate over the line speed issue for poultry production is to recognize that there is a distinct difference between the line speed for slaughter and the line…
Continue Reading Eschewing obfuscation on poultry slaughter line speed
One significant provision in Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue’s most recent realignment announcement would move the U.S. Codex Office from the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to the newly created Trade and Foreign Agricultural…
Continue Reading Moving the U.S. Codex Office to USDA Trade is a big mistake
There is always a healthy amount of skepticism from parents whenever children claim they were able to clean their rooms in five minutes. While the children may have met the literal requirement of the parent’s…
Continue Reading Chinese poultry: Verification must precede trust for food safety
A seemingly minor component of the USDA reorganization plan released last week could have a negative impact on food safety as the plan gets implemented. Much of the focus has been on the creation of…
Continue Reading USDA reorganization plan could reduce food safety protections
While it may appear safe to assume that President Trump will have no interest in these issues, determining his impact on the food safety agenda actually will require a nuanced effort. Notwithstanding the tweet complaining…
Continue Reading Trump’s well-done habits could bode well for food safety
(This Aug. 14, 2014, blog post by Brian Ronholm, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is reposted here with permission.) On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of…
Continue Reading FSIS Enhances Food Safety Protections for Ground Beef
…
Continue Reading Wolverine Packing Recall: What Consumers Need to Know
(This May 16, 2014, blog post by Brian Ronholm, Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is reposted here with permission.)
As grilling season heats up, the…
Continue Reading FSIS is ‘Super-Sizing’ Ground Beef Pathogen Testing This Summer