On February 28, 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a national search for a new Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods and provided an update on the recently proposed restructuring of the agency's Human Foods Program and Office of Regulatory Affairs (ORA). Following the announcement, organizations representing consumers, industry, and state and local regulators expressed their concerns.
The coalition of stakeholder organizations—including Consumer Reports, Consumer Brands Association (CBA), the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), Stop Foodborne Illness, the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA), the Environmental Working Group, and the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI)—has been asking FDA to strengthen leadership at the agency by appointing a fully empowered Deputy Commissioner for foods, with direct line authority over all key elements of the Foods Program, as recommended in the independent evaluation of FDA conducted by the Reagan-Udall Foundation.