Congress Delays FDA Food Traceability Rule to 2028 as Outbreak Sickens 24,000
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 16
Congress Delays FDA Food Traceability Rule to 2028 as Outbreak Sickens 24,000
2 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 16
Summary
A 2025 appropriations provision bars FDA enforcement of the food traceability rule until July 2028, extending a delay that began after the 2011 food-safety law and pushing implementation 15 years past schedule.
The rule would require detailed records for high-risk foods such as leafy greens, eggs and soft cheese, letting investigators trace contaminated products back through distributors and packers to farms faster.
That gap mattered this year: a cyclospora outbreak in the Midwest sickened more than 24,000 people and killed two, and advocates say the rule could have narrowed the source much sooner.
Retailers and food industry groups including FMI and the National Retail Federation lobbied in 2024 and 2025, arguing compliance would be costly and operationally complex across the supply chain.
Consumer, public health and labor groups are now urging Congress to reverse the delay, saying weak traceback is hurting confidence in food safety and even depressing lettuce prices, which fell more than 16% in July.