Congresswoman Brown Raises Concerns on Reports of FDA Ending Food Inspections

Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11), Vice Ranking Member of the House Committee on Agriculture released the following statement in response to a report from CBS News that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plans to end most food safety inspections work:

“Reporting indicates that the Trump Administration is planning to dramatically change the way food safety inspections take place. We cannot play games with food safety. Congress and the American people need all the facts about what the FDA is planning and how they will make sure that we do not lose any effectiveness or coverage. 

“This isn’t complicated: fewer FDA food safety inspections would mean more outbreaks, more illnesses, and more preventable deaths. E. coli doesn’t care about budget cuts or arbitrary FDA layoffs.

“The FDA has a responsibility to protect our food supply, especially across state lines. Handing that duty off to state and local agencies that may not have the resources is a potentially unsafe move that puts families in Northeast Ohio and across America at risk. 

“I am especially concerned because the Trump Administration to date has too often been reckless and chaotic. With a break-first, ask-later approach, Trump has repeatedly ignored the real-world impact of his decisions – and one thing we should definitely not break is food safety. 

“As Vice Ranking Member of the Agriculture Committee, I’m deeply committed to the safety and integrity of our food supply chain. Trust and transparency are critical to maintaining food safety.”

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