“Buckle up, it may be a wild ride,” said Gary Huddleston, the American Feed Industry Association’s director of feed manufacturing and regulatory affairs, at the 2021 Feed Education Program.

While the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has brought a screeching halt to most of the Food and Drug Administration’s routine inspection activity, now is a good time to think about and prepare for your next inspection when they resume. The FDA has not yet ramped up to its normal level of Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) inspections, but has set an aggressive plan for fiscal year 2021.

With only a week left to go, both candidates are desperately vying for your vote. Early estimates show that more than 60 million Americans have already cast their votes, surpassing all 2016 early ballots submitted, and yet still, more people are waiting in socially distant lines to vote in-person early or are expected to turn out on Election Day.

I am sure you saw the headlines a few weeks ago about Burger King’s new advertising campaign and how the fast food retailer plans to reduce greenhouse gases by including lemongrass in cattle diets. Well, surprise, surprise! Their description of cows emitting gas (aka farts) is just plain wrong and the research they used on the feed ingredient is inconclusive.

Before I dive into this Food and Drug Administration news update, I would be remiss if I didn’t somehow address the COVID-19 pandemic and its implications for the animal food industry. FDA is so grateful for the industry’s cooperation with us during this trying time. We have really relied on animal food trade associations, like the American Feed Industry Association, to help gather information on supply chains and to share critical information with industry. I’m impressed by how well you’ve managed to maintain supply while still protecting your employees. Rest assured, FDA is working with our state partners and agencies, like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Federal Emergency Management Agency, on an all-of-government response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The only way we are going to get through this is if we work together. 

Cell-cultured muscle is not a new phenomenon. In 1885, Wilhelm Roux was able to culture cells from the neural plate of a chicken embryo for a few days. Those early experiments eventually expanded to a variety of cell types, including muscle.

What is this this “new normal” we keep hearing so much about? We’re all still trying to figure out what  “the new normal” means for each of us, but I know that I’m tired of saying it and I think we can all agree that we are tired of hearing it. However, looking through the lens of the advocacy world, the closer I look, the more it seems that not much has actually changed.

Early input from a broad swath of food activists and professional groups encouraged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to expand the size of its 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) and introduce greater transparency into the process by livestreaming its meetings. But, despite the increased opportunity for public input and a thorough review of current research, there is little evidence that federal dietary guidelines have done much for the public’s health since major changes to the recommended daily allowances were implemented 40 years ago. So, is the problem the dietary guidelines or individual eating patterns?