Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) has written a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, urging her to rescind the decision to terminate two key food safety scientific advisory committees.

On March 7, 2025, it was revealed that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) intends to eliminate the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) and National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI), which are charged with providing impartial scientific advice and recommendations to federal agencies on food safety issues related to microbiology and inspections. Most recently, NACMCF was reviewing USDA’s regulatory approach for Listeria monocytogenes, prompted by the fatal listeriosis outbreak linked to Boar’s Head deli meats that occurred in the latter half of 2024. The committee was also researching the issue of Cronobacter in powdered infant formula for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), due to the infant formula safety and supply crisis of 2022 involving manufacturer Abbott Nutrition and resulting in two infant deaths.

Prominent food industry stakeholders and advocacy groups, including Consumer Reports and Stop Foodborne Illness, spoke out against the decision.

Sen. Blumenthal’s letter draws attention to the continued public health threat posed by foodborne illness, as evidenced by the aforementioned food safety crises, as well as an ongoing, fatal listeriosis outbreak linked to nutritional shakes served at healthcare facilities. “Disbanding [NACMCF and NACMPI] will hamstring our public health and food safety agencies from responding to future crises or, better yet, preventing them from happening in the first place,” he wrote. “This administration’s misguided attempt at ‘reducing bureaucracy’ threatens to halt any progress made toward strengthening the safety of our food supply. I urge you to reestablish these advisory committees, as dismissing scientific expertise on the heels of several food contaminations—some deadly—is dangerous and irresponsible.”

The letter asked three questions, as follows, requesting a response by March 26:

1. The stated reason for terminating NACMCF and NACMPI was the Executive Order, titled, ‘Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy.’ Given that committee members were volunteers and the budget for NACMCF is $225,000 and NACMPI is $75,000, how was it determined that this work was subject to reduction?"
2. "These advisory committees are comprised of representatives from across the stakeholder spectrum—industry, consumers, public health, academia—who provided impartial, scientific advice and recommendations to USDA, FDA, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). How do you envision USDA being able to access this kind of information and expertise going forward?"
3. "As noted, the upcoming charges for NACMCF included updating and improving the regulatory approach to Listeria subsequent to the Boar's Head outbreak last year, as well as reviewing Cronobacter, the bacteria linked to the infant formula crisis. Since USDA disbanded NACMCF, what experts will USDA consult in their absence?”

Read Sen. Blumenthal’s full letter here.