The Obama administration released a presidential memorandum last week establishing a federal strategy for reversing the declining populations of pollinators such as bees and butterflies. Over the past decade, populations of bees and other pollinators have drastically fallen, threatening the stability of a large proportion of crops worldwide which rely
Continue Reading White House Launches Task Force to Help Pollinators Recover
White House Releases Spring 2014 Regulatory Plan
The White House has released its “Current Regulatory Plan and the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions” for Spring 2014. When Food Safety News reported on the Fall 2013 agenda, we told you about the food safety issues in development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and
Continue Reading White House Releases Spring 2014 Regulatory Plan
100-Plus Groups Ask Obama to Ditch New Poultry Rules
More than 100 organizations signed a letter sent to President Obama on Thursday asking the White House to withdraw the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s proposed rule on the “Modernization of Poultry Slaughter Inspection.” The organizations signing on to the letter cover a range of interests, from organic food retailers such
Continue Reading 100-Plus Groups Ask Obama to Ditch New Poultry Rules
Fall 2013 White House Regulatory Plan Includes Many Food Safety Rules
The White House put out its “Current Regulatory Plan and the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions” for Fall 2013 on Nov. 26, and it lists a number of food safety issues that the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will be dealing with
Continue Reading Fall 2013 White House Regulatory Plan Includes Many Food Safety Rules
Documents Show OMB Weakened FDA's Food Safety Rules
The White House Office of Management and Budget significantly weakened the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s draft food safety rules, documents posted on the Federal Register last week show. The hundreds of pages of documents, first discovered and reported by Food and Chemical News (subscription only) on Friday, confirm what
Continue Reading Documents Show OMB Weakened FDA's Food Safety Rules
White House: Sequestration Would Mean Big Cuts to Food Safety Inspections
If Congress allows the sequester to kick in on March 1, cuts to food safety would be one of the “most damaging” consequences of the automatic budget reductions, according to a memo put out by the White House on Friday. The analysis by the Obama administration’s Office of Management and
Continue Reading White House: Sequestration Would Mean Big Cuts to Food Safety Inspections
Proposal to Label Mechanically Tenderized Meat Remains Under Review at OMB
A proposed rule by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to label mechanically tenderized beef products is now under extended review at the White House Office of Management and Budget. Food safety advocates, the meat industry and FSIS said they do not know details about the
Continue Reading Proposal to Label Mechanically Tenderized Meat Remains Under Review at OMB
FDA Seeks to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Delay of Food Safety Rules
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is making a big effort to enact the delayed Food Safety Modernization Act, but the rules being developed are complex and need more time, the agency argued in a motion to dismiss a lawsuit over the delay, which was filed Friday. The FDA submitted
Continue Reading FDA Seeks to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Delay of Food Safety Rules
White House Turns Down Raw Milk Petition
The Obama administration delivered its official response last week to the 6,078 signors of a petition on WhiteHouse.gov who requested federal-level legalization of all raw milk sales. The response indicated that the White House continues to support the current regulation of raw milk sales, which allow states to determine legality
Top USDA Advisor Heads to White House
David Lazarus, a senior advisor to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, is moving to the White House to serve as advisor to President Obama on agriculture and rural affairs, a position on the Domestic Policy Council that has been vacant for 18 months.
Lazarus, who made the transition from the U.S.