U.S. Food and Drug: FDA Updates 2022

The FDA has recently published several new and interesting projects and updates. Below are a few initiatives relevant to healthcare foodservice and clinical nutrition.

Food [Safety] Program Guidance Under Development

The FDA’s Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition and Office of Food Policy & Response released a priority list of draft and final guidance topics for the FDA Foods Program to complete over the next 12 months.

The list of food safety initiatives, and corresponding guidance documents for 2023, is very much welcomed to further ensure the safety of consumers. The VST Suite^TM is structured to implement safety guidance notices as they are published.

FASTER Act Video for Food Industry and Other Stakeholders

The FDA, under the FASTER Act of 2021, has an overview video available:

Of note, sesame has been added to the big 8 (now 9) major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybean.

Vision Software Compliance: Foods containing sesame seed and oil are assigned to allergen codes in the VST Suite^TM, strictly disallowing selection of the foods.

FDA Issues Final Rule for Laboratory Accreditation for Analyses of Foods

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued a final rule establishing the Laboratory Accreditation for Analyses of Foods (LAAF) program as required by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Under the LAAF program, the FDA will recognize accreditation bodies that will accredit food testing laboratories to standards established in the final rule (referred to as LAAF-accredited laboratories). Currently, food testing, including environmental testing, is completed by private laboratories that may conform to a variety of standards & be subject to various levels of oversight.

Vision Software congratulates the FDA on their initiative to accredit laboratories that conduct nutrient analysis of foods. All nutrient updates will be applied in the VST Suite^TM Nutrient Database, where indicated.