Decision undermines FDA’s ability to protect the public from contaminated food
WASHINGTON DC – The FDA’s decision to delay the implementation of its “Food Traceability Rule” by 30 months puts consumers’ health at risk by undercutting the agency’s ability to respond quickly and effectively to foodborne illness outbreaks. CR along with the Safe Food Coalition had urged the FDA to resist industry pressure to delay implementation of the food safety rule required by legislation passed by Congress in 2010.
“This decision is extremely disappointing and puts consumers at risk of getting sick from unsafe food because a small segment of the industry pushed for delay, despite having 15 years to prepare,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports. “Many retailers have already said that they expect their suppliers to follow the rule’s requirements in advance of the compliance date, but today’s announcement may interfere with this progress. Delaying this critical food safety rule undermines the administration’s goal of making America healthy again.”
Congress required the FDA to enact the traceability rule as part of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which was passed with bipartisan support in 2010. FSMA directed FDA to propose recordkeeping requirements for certain “high risk” foods no later than January 2013. When FDA failed to propose the recordkeeping requirements, the Center for Food Safety sued the agency, leading to a federal court order mandating that it propose requirements by September 2020 and finalize the rulemaking process by November 2022.
The FDA complied with that order, announcing a final rule that requires manufacturers, processors, packers and retailers to maintain records containing certain “Key Data Elements,” including the codes, associated with specific “Critical Tracking Events” for designated foods. Parties subject to the rule must be able to report the required information to the FDA within 24 hours to help facilitate more effective investigations of foodborne illness outbreaks and recalls. The rule was supposed to go into effect on January 20, 2026.
Media Contact: Michael McCauley, michael.mccauley@consumer.org