Several senators have written letters to U.S. Health Secretary Kennedy urging Cyclospora surveillance to be restored to the FoodNet program. Experts say that FoodNet cuts, although problematic, did not cause the current outbreak.
Public health experts say the ongoing cyclosporiasis situation exposes growing weaknesses in national foodborne illness surveillance, highlighting how funding and program cuts and CDC staff attrition could undermine outbreak detection and delay response, affecting public health communication and consumer confidence in food safety.
In a letter, Senator Amy Klobuchar urged CDC and FDA to fully restore food safety programs that have been affected under the Trump Administration and continue supporting state public health agencies with the resources needed to detect, investigate, and respond to foodborne illness outbreaks.
After losing more than 4,000 employees since the Trump Administration took office, FDA is in the process of hiring and re-hiring thousands. The agency is also close to choosing its next Commissioner and has selected a new Director of Produce Safety in the Human Foods Program’s Office of Microbiological Food Safety.
The Trump Administration’s Department of Justice “does not believe in regulation by prosecution,” a spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal, aligning with a May 2025 Executive Order that “strongly discourages” criminal prosecution of any regulatory offense not explicitly identified by the Administration.
With two proposed rules issued on May 18, the Trump EPA followed through on its stated intent to rescind or extend the compliance date for Biden-era drinking water limits for several “forever chemicals” of concern.
The plan includes the creation of a new, central National Food Safety Center in Iowa and Science Center in Georgia. Approximately 200 (two-thirds) of USDA-FSIS’ Washington D.C.-area workforce will be relocated. Other USDA offices, including ARS and NIFA, also face restructuring and relocations.
Erica Schwartz, M.D., M.P.H., J.D. is a retired Rear Admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, who has held medical leadership positions in both the U.S. Coast Guard and Navy.
FDA’s Human Foods Program specifically would receive a significant increase in funding compared to the previous fiscal year (FY), including $25 million to help address chemical contaminants and additives like PFAS, toxic heavy metals, and GRAS ingredients.
EPA repealed Biden-era amendments that had tightened emissions regulations under the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) rule. Critics warn that this decision could lead to greater bioaccumulation of the neurotoxin methylmercury in fish, increasing human dietary exposure.
