Regulators in the Spotlight: FDA & USDA’s Vision for Safer Food
9:45 AM - 10:45 AMMon
Grand Ballroom ABC, 1st level
General Session
As the U.S. food safety landscape undergoes transformative change, this session brings together top leaders from the FDA and USDA to explore how regulatory priorities are evolving—and what that means for the future of industry oversight, public health, and consumer trust. With the FDA’s Human Foods Program undergoing historic reorganization and USDA FSIS advancing its approach to pathogen control, both agencies are signaling a clear intent to modernize how food safety is managed across the supply chain. Agency leaders will outline their visions for advancing food safety through science-based policymaking, enhanced surveillance, and streamlined regulatory frameworks. They will address the most pressing issues impacting FSMA implementation, from traceability and preventive controls to chemical ingredient oversight, and offer updates on USDA’s strategies to reduce the burden of foodborne pathogens in meat and poultry products. Equally important, this session will emphasize the critical role of stakeholder engagement. Attendees will hear how industry leaders, state regulators, consumer advocates, and academic partners can actively participate in shaping policy—ensuring that new regulations are practical, effective, and rooted in collaboration.