President Trump directs agencies to repeal regulations without notice and comment rulemaking. President Donald Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum on April 9, directing the repeal of "unlawful regulations" deemed to impede economic growth and innovation. In response to a series of court decisions, including Loper Bright, the Administration is directing federal agencies “to identify unlawful and potentially unlawful regulations” within 60 days and “immediately take steps to effectuate the repeal of any regulation, or the portion of any regulation, that clearly exceeds the agency’s statutory authority or is otherwise unlawful.” Significantly, the memorandum directs the repeal of regulations to be done without notice and comment rulemaking, utilizing the “good cause” exception to the Administrative Procedures Act.

Federal hiring freeze is extended. In a Presidential Memorandum issued on April 17, the Administration has extended the current federal hiring freeze until July 15, 2025. This freeze impacts all executive departments and agencies “regardless of their sources of operational programmatic funding.” The memorandum also prohibits contracting outside of the Federal government to circumvent the intent of the freeze. However, it excludes “military personnel of the Armed Forces or to positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, or public safety, and does not apply to the Executive Office of the President or the components thereof,” as well as political appointees and other excepted positions, including non-career Senior Executive Service.

FDA will permit some staffers to work remotely, as deep cuts continue. On April 8, the FDA sent a memorandum to some of its hundreds of drug reviewers reversing its new policy against telework and permitting those staffers and their supervisors to work remotely at least two days a week. FDA staffers said a similar policy permitting some telework was communicated – although not always in writing – to reviewers who handle tobacco products, vaccines, biotech drugs, and medical devices. These steps were taken in hopes of staunching an ongoing voluntary exodus of experienced reviewers and staffers that reportedly raised fears that the agency would no longer be able to perform its most basic functions. In recent weeks, the Trump Administration has slashed the staff, and functions, of FDA and all of the Department of Health and Humans Services. In March, thousands of staffers were fired, then a few were rehired, and then, the first week in April, an additional 3,400 staffers – more than 15 percent of the agency’s workforce – were fired. Recent radical cuts at the agency included more than 250 people from the Human Foods Program, entire units focused on such work as preventing birth defects or responding to avian flu, numerous regional offices, most of the agency’s communication staff, and teams that support the work of food inspectors and investigators. The agency has also seen an unprecedented flood of firings and departures of senior leadership – in recent weeks, more than 20 director level or higher FDA staff have reportedly been forced out. See some of our earlier coverage of these actions here. On April 9, in testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, former FDA Commissioner Dr. David Kessler called the extensive cuts “devastating, haphazard, thoughtless and chaotic.” He agreed with committee chair Representative James Comer (R-KY) that the agency should work to improve food safety and increase enforcement against illegal imports and counterfeit products, but, he stated, “The current cuts will make achieving those priorities impossible.”

Canada offers tariff relief to protect food sector amid US trade dispute. As part of its response to escalating US tariffs, on April 15, the Canadian federal government announced targeted support for Canadian businesses in the food and beverage supply chain. A temporary six-month remission will apply to US-sourced goods used in Canadian manufacturing, food processing, and packaging, providing immediate relief to companies that rely on cross-border inputs to remain competitive. Remissions being an exceptional measure, they are generally granted for inputs that cannot be reasonably sourced elsewhere or in cases that would have severe adverse impacts on the Canadian economy. As such, the government emphasized that the measure is time-limited, aimed at helping businesses adjust their supply chains and prioritize domestic sourcing where possible. Additionally, large enterprises critical to Canada’s food security may qualify for loans under the new Large Enterprise Tariff Loan Facility, offering liquidity to sustain operations during the trade disruption.

Another restructuring on the way for FDA? The Washington, DC news service Inside Health Policy has reported “a seismic plan to reorganize FDA” that would replace the agency’s current product-specific with new function-focused offices. Under the plan – which reportedly was set out in a Health and Human Services email leaked to the news service early this month – all product review divisions would be merged into a single Office of Product Evaluation and Regulation, described as “a central hub for product review and regulatory decision-making across drugs, biologics, devices, tobacco, and foods.” In addition, the restructuring would create five new offices: an Office of Inspections, Compliance, and Enforcement, combining the compliance units from each FDA Center; an Office of Strategic Programs and Innovation, concentrating on cross- agency initiatives and technology modernization; a Digital Health Center of Excellence, focusing on long-term strategic planning and technology adoption; an Office of Scientific and Regulatory Policy assembled from what remains of FDA’s various policy offices, which were hollowed out in deep cuts to HHS; and an Office of Administrative and Shared Services to handle human resources, training, IT, and budget. The massive reorganization creating the FDA’s Human Foods Program came into effect on October 1, 2024.

Kennedy says Trump Administration is looking at major revisions to the Dietary Guidelines. On April 3, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. told reporters that HHS is now looking at major changes in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are jointly updated by HHS and the USDA every five years. The guidelines set out science-based nutritional advice for Americans and serve as the foundation for national food assistance programs. In his remarks, Kennedy said that “we’re in the middle right now of very, very energetically revising the nutrition guidelines,” and went on to criticize the preliminary report from the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee as “a 453-page document that looks like it was written by the food processing industry. We are going to come up with a document that is simple, that lets people know with great clarity what kind of foods their children need to eat, what kind of foods they can eat, and what’s good for them, what’s good nutrition.” In March, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said that she and Kennedy were doing a “line by line” review of the preliminary report. “We will make certain the 2025-2030 Guidelines are based on sound science, not political science,” she stated. “Gone are the days where leftist ideologies guide public policy.”

Call for Rollins to reinstate two key food safety advisory committees. A coalition of consumer protection and food industry organizations is urging US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to reinstate two key federal food safety scientific advisory committees. On April 8, the 24 groups, joined by seven experts, wrote to Rollins about the March termination of the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) and the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI), which had been terminated ostensibly to trim federal bureaucracy and save money. Those committees are composed of volunteer experts – representing industry, public health, academia, and consumers – who impartially advised USDA, FDA, and CDC. The NACMPI advised on federal and state inspection program activities. NACMCF advised on microbiological issues in food safety; most recently, it had been examining the regulatory approach of the Food Safety and Inspection Service to Listeria monocytogenes following a deadly late 2024 listeriosis outbreak linked to deli meats. In March, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) also called on Rollins to reinstate the committees. He asked why the committees had been terminated on the grounds of reducing federal bureaucracy, given their modest operating budgets and the entirely voluntary nature of the committee members’ work.

Administration says it is considering financial aid for farmers hurt by tariffs. Trump Administration officials are reportedly assuring farm-state Republicans that they will eventually funnel billions of taxpayer dollars to farmers who are feeling the fallout from President Trump’s intensifying global trade war. However, the Administration reportedly first wants to take stock of the effects of the tariffs on the agriculture sector before rolling out this aid, officials have told Republicans on Capitol Hill; that process will likely take several more months. On April 3, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told key senators that she was exploring how to provide farmers with billions in economic aid via the Commodity Credit Corporation, a government financing institution that supports USDA farm price and income support commodity programs, commodity export credit guarantees, and agricultural export subsidies. Foreign export markets are a major source of revenue for US farmers, who have found themselves profoundly impacted by retaliatory tariffs and the cancellation of USAID’s international food programs. In 2018, a federal aid package distributed $28 billion to American farmers. Given the immense reach of the current tariffs, Republican legislators reportedly believe any aid package for US farmers would likely need to be far larger.

Up to 1 in 3 grocery items carry questionable “Canadian” labels, investigation finds. An analysis of grocery store labelling practices conducted by Marketplace at the CBC has determined that some retailers may be mislabelling some products with “Canadian” claims without clear justification. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) sets requirements for the use of certain terms like “Made in Canada” and “Product of Canada” but there is more flexibility with the term “Prepared in Canada.” The CFIA can take action against misleading or deceptive marketing.

Senate panel considers permitting whole milk to be served in schools. On April 1, the US Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry held a hearing on the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, a proposal that would reinstate permission for US schools to serve whole milk to students, in addition to low-fat and fat-free milk. The House of Representatives is considering similar legislation. The federally financed school meals program aligns with the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, allowing only nonfat or low-fat milk to be served in schools. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans see dairy products as healthy, providing vitamin D, calcium, and protein; the guidelines also recommend consuming milk that has little or no fat and no added sugars. The 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, which is working to prepare the next iteration of the guidelines, has advised maintaining the current guidelines about milk in school meals. Early in the hearing, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), the committee ranking member, turned the discussion to wider concerns about the impact of deep Trump Administration cuts on nutritional programs across the country and Republican proposals for deeper cuts. “As this committee looks at federal child nutrition programs, we should ensure changes to the programs improve them rather than take away nutritious foods from kids across the country,” she stated. “Unfortunately, schools, charities, and food banks across the country are facing a loss of these fresh nutritious foods because of USDA’s recent cancellation of local food purchase agreement and local food for school funds.” She offered the example of Minnesota, where “schools will lose significant funding for local commodities” and farmers are losing “critical domestic markets at the same time when retaliatory tariffs… are costing farmers and ranchers greatly.”

California recycling department says it will enforce law on expanded polystyrene packaging. On April 4, the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) issued an update on SB 54, the state’s expanded polystyrene (EPS) food service ware ban, saying that the ban will now be enforced by the department going forward. The EPS ban is a component of the state’s Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, passed in 2022. The law requires that in order to continue selling EPS products in the state, food service ware producers must show that all EPS-covered material has met a 25 percent recycling rate by the end of 2024. In its update, CalRecycle said that this requirement has not been met. “As a result, EPS producers are prohibited from selling, offering for sale, distributing or importing EPS food service ware, like single-use takeout containers and cups, in or into California,” CalRecycle wrote. Please also see our Plastics Legal Topic Hub.

Bipartisan push is under way to ban dyes and additives in food. More than half of US state legislatures are considering bills that would ban the use of several dyes and other additives in food. As we reported in our April 4 issue, West Virginia in March enacted a statewide ban on certain artificial food dyes and preservatives that is even more sweeping than California’s law. This year, 51 bills targeting food additives have been introduced in 30 state legislatures, ranging from traditionally conservative states like Missouri and South Dakota to liberal states like Vermont and Illinois.

TTB extends comment period for proposed new alcohol labeling rules. On April 7, the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) announced it is inviting further comments on two proposed rules that would require nutrition and allergen labeling on alcoholic beverages, including wines, distilled spirits, and malt beverages. The proposed rules, published on January 17, were initially open for comment for 90 days; with this announcement, the TTB is extending the comment period to August 15, 2025. The first of the two rules under consideration would require the disclosure of per-serving alcohol, calorie, and nutrient information. The second rule would require the disclosure of the presence of major food allergens (ie, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, soybeans, and sesame). The comment period was extended at the request of nine trade organizations.

Consumer habits this year? More booze, more stockpiling, less dining out. In the coming year, Americans will be drinking more alcohol, dining out less frequently, stockpiling more groceries, eating more snacks and vegetables, and looking for new flavors rather than traditional comfort foods, according to new behavioral research from think tank Culinary Tides. These trends are the result of economic stressors and political uncertainty, stated company president Suzy Badaracco. Consumers worried about money will skip restaurant meals and eat at home, where they will do more snacking, which will “continue to go up for two reasons: I am stressed out, or I can’t afford a meal.” Vegetarian and plant-forward home cooking will rise, she added, simply “because it’s cheaper to eat this way.” And people will continue exploring novel global flavors as an escape from stress, she said. Regarding grocery stockpiling, Badaracco noted that research is already showing this behavior on the rise, triggered by concerns about tariffs. “The new term for stockpiling,” she added, “is doom spending.” Finally, consumers will not only be drinking more alcohol but switching to inexpensive kinds – a boon for sales of beer. Commenting on recent surveys that indicated Americans intend to drink less this year, she said, “We are all going to be drinking more alcohol.”

Avian flu update.

• The growing outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in the United States, affecting commercial poultry, dairy cows, wild birds, and species of wild mammals, and domestic cats, has Canadian scientists on high alert as migratory birds return north for the spring. Canadian officials are ramping up surveillance, testing wildlife and livestock, and coordinating with US and global health partners to curb potential transmission. Although Canada has reported only one human case to date, public health agencies are monitoring the situation closely, leveraging lessons from COVID-19 to enhance preparedness.
• In March, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a $1 billion five-step strategy to combat avian influenza, a sweeping plan including $500 million in biosecurity support for poultry and egg producers; $400 million in financial relief for affected farms; up to $100 million in funding for vaccine research and development – including a major policy shift away from depopulation; removing certain “regulatory burdens,” when possible; and considering importation of eggs as a temporary stopgap. That plan, according to recent media reports, will be funded by the elimination of two USDA programs, the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program, which helped childcare facilities and schools buy food from nearby farms, and the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which purchased crops from farmers for food banks and other feeding organizations.
• On April 9, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service reported that it has detected H5N1 avian flu in three more dairy herds, all in Idaho – bringing the total number of infected herds in that state to 52 and the national total to 1,005. APHIS also confirmed two more detections in commercial flocks, in Wisconsin and South Dakota. In the 30 days leading up to April 11, 1.87 million birds were culled in the US due to H5N1 infection. USDA also reported eight more confirmations of avian flu in mammals, among them three infections in housecats in California, Colorado, and Ohio.
• A three-year-old girl in Mexico has died of bird flu. Her death of respiratory complications was reported on April 8 by Mexico's Health Ministry. At this writing, it is not known how she contracted the virus. In January, an elderly Louisiana man died of bird flu after being exposed to an infected backyard flock as well as wild birds.
• The FDA has granted fast-track designation for a self-amplifying mRNA vaccine candidate to protect humans against influenza A H5N1 subtype, also known as bird flu. Clinical trials of the vaccine, produced by Arcturus Therapeutics, are ongoing.
• With the support of a $650,000 grant from USDA, researchers from its Agricultural Research Service and the University of Maryland are working to develop a nasal vaccine to protect dairy cattle from H5N1. The scientists will work to adapt technology they originally developed to create nasal vaccines for other viruses. Such a vaccine, the researchers say, would be easy to administer and would work more swiftly than conventional vaccines, delivering a key protein directly to the respiratory tract and blocking infections before they begin. Conventional vaccines, in contrast, attack a virus once an infection has started.
• Several National Animal Health Laboratory staffers who are part of the government’s avian flu response team will reportedly leave the agency at the end of this month, having accepted April 1 offers of financial incentives to quit. The staffers provided administrative support, managed laboratory funding, and worked to maintain consistency in bird flu testing. Earlier this month, the top veterinarians at the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, who oversaw the US response to bird flu, were laid off, and more than 130 staff were cut. On April 3, the USDA suspended the Interlaboratory Comparison Exercise, which would have coordinated the avian flu research of numerous US labs: 40 laboratories across the agency’s Veterinary Laboratory Investigation and Research Network, USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network, and labs in private industry, after the loss of staff who supported the program’s scientific and testing needs. Also hollowed out by the unprecedented cuts is the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the federal agency responsible for ensuring a healthy, reliable workforce. On April 1, more than 90 percent of NIOSH workers were laid off. Many sources reporting that development raised concerns about the consequent safety of the agricultural workforce in the midst of the H5N1 bird flu outbreak: the vast majority of those infected with H5N1 in the US have been poultry and dairy workers.