Impact Of Mass Layoffs, FDA Postpones Susu Security Testing In The US

Illustration of Milk (Photo: Freepik/Freepik)

JAKARTA - The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has suspended quality control programs for liquid milk testing and other dairy products. This decision was taken due to the limited capacity of the food and nutrition security division after massive labor cuts occurred in the Department of Health and Humanitarian Services (HHS), which is part of the FDA agency.

In an email obtained by Reuters, it was stated that this termination was part of the impact of layoffs on some 20 thousand HHS employees. This move is part of President Donald Trump's policy aimed at cutting the number of federal government employees.

According to an email sent by the FDA's Products Safety Division to the laboratory network, starting Monday, the agency officially suspends a proficiency test program for raw milk and a 'A' Grade-made product. The 'A' Grade Milk is a milk category with the highest sanitation standards circulating in the market.

The Moffett Center Boundary Test Laboratory, which is part of the FDA's food safety division, is no longer capable of providing laboratory support for data proficiency and analysis tests, the FDA wrote in the email, quoted from the Huffpost page.

This suspension has not only resulted in testing milk, but also other testing programs under development, including testing accuracy for bird flu in milk and cheese, as well as detection of pathogens such as cyclospora parasites in a variety of food products.

However, a HHS spokesman confirmed that the laboratory had indeed been scheduled to be deactivated before the employee pruning took place. He also said that during the transition period to the new laboratory, testing on dairy products would still be continued even though the proficiency test was temporarily suspended.

The Trump administration has previously proposed a 40 billion US dollars cut in budget for the FDA, sparking concerns about the future of key institutions' programs.

The suspended proficiency test program plays an important role in maintaining the consistency and accuracy of food safety laboratories across the US. Laboratorys in various states rely heavily on this program to meet the accreditation and national testing standards.

The FDA is actively evaluating alternative approaches for the upcoming fiscal year and will continue to provide the latest information to all participating laboratories.