A reorganization of the FDA that included the appointment of its first deputy commissioner for human foods has been approved after months of preparation and is targeted for implementation on Oct. 1, said the agency on Thursday. “This is a distinctive moment for the FDA” and its largest restructuring in recent history, said commissioner Robert Califf.
In January 2023, following a baby formula crisis and a scathing critique of the FDA’s disjointed structure, Califf announced he would put food safety offices under the control of a powerful deputy commissioner. The reorganization would streamline food regulation and give it higher prominence, he said. Jim Jones, a former EPA pesticide administrator, was hired last August as the deputy commissioner with decision-making authority over all parts of the Human Foods Program, from setting policy to allocating resources.
In a release, the FDA said the unified Human Foods Program will “elevate the importance of nutrition, strengthen local, state, and international partnerships, and position the FDA to regulate innovative food and agricultural products more effectively. In addition, the agency will be better positioned to uphold the safety of the nation’s food supply, and respond to food-related emergencies, such as the 2022 infant formula shortages.”
The FDA has jurisdiction over 78 percent of the U.S. food supply, including fruits, vegetables, and most prepared foods. Yet its work on food and nutrition is often overshadowed by its role in overseeing drugs and medical devices.
To read a pre-publication version of the Federal Register notice of the FDA reorganization, click here.