The Trump Administration’s cuts at the Department of Health have endangered the functioning of the Food and Drugs Administration, thus putting the safety of our food in jeopardy. The LILA Gazette explains.

By Belén Haberman – 7th grade.

Our food safety should not be a political issue but simply a basic human right. Despite its many flaws, the Food and Drug Association (FDA) has kept our food supply relatively sanitary and safe. The ideal approach to food safety regulation is not by using a sledgehammer but rather a scalpel to carefully establish essential changes to improve the efficiency of regulating food quality. Unfortunately, the dangers threatening our health have been increasing by the current policies of the Trump Administration, exposing problems and inefficiencies that have existed throughout previous administrations. Not only are we now more at risk of catching foodborne illnesses but also unsure about who is securing the things we consume.  

The FDA, an agency of The US Department of Health and Human Services, has long played a vital role in protecting our health and food safety over the last 118 years. Their role is to monitor  food companies and farmers who supply our nutrition manufactured both in the US and abroad. Additionally, they maintain a database that contains information about problems and complaints regarding food products. The FDA protects the consumer from potential health risks and overpricing of goods being sold and also sustains the security and purity of the foods we eat which is done though their food compliance program laws. 

The history of the creation of the FDA is interesting and complex. In the late 1800s, the population was getting seriously ill from tainted food. The chief chemist of the US department of agriculture, Harvey Washington Wiley, began advocating for increased federal regulations on food safety. Additionally, the author, Upton Sinclair, wrote his novel The Jungle which discussed the unsanitary condition of the meatpacking industry. This caused a public outcry which helped the passage of  The Pure Food and Drug Act. President Theodor Roosevelt signed it into law in 1906.

Today the FDA is under attack by officials, neglecting our best interests while justifying these actions with the excuse of making our government more efficient. For instance, The Trump Administration has frozen the spending on government credit cards used by scientists performing routine testing on deadly bacteria, proving how jobs are being threatened by these extreme mandates. Additionally, key committees which research how to  improve the quality of certain foods have been shut down no matter the importance of their testing. Dr. Peter Marks, a top FDA official, resigned under the threat of being fired by his boss Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Secretary of The Department of Health and Human Services and a close Trump ally.  “Undermining confidence (…) is irresponsible, detrimental to public health and a clear danger to our nation’s health, safety, and security,” said Dr. Marks in his resignation letter. 

For food to be confirmed as safely consumable, each product runs through multi step operations. These include routine inspections of facilities, farms, food handling compliances and testings on chemical safety. Removing these safeguards increases the chances of foodborne illness and puts public health at greater risk. By the elimination of FDA food screenings, higher levels of foodborne pathogens such as Salmonella and E. Coli will be found. According to FDA.gov “The Federal government estimates that there are about 48 million cases of foodborne illness annually- the equivalent of sickening 1 in 6 Americans each year.” Most likely, these outbreaks will spread and the cases of food poisoning will rise throughout the population. 

As of this week, more than 10,000 employees have been fired from HHS including 3,500 from the FDA. Not only are these professionals now left jobless, but funding from the government has been terminated, preventing the ongoing monitoring and research for keeping the food chain sanitary and reliable. As stated by the news source Reuters, “Employees said staff had to present their badges at the building entrance, and those who had been fired were given a ticket and told to return home.”

So that funding can be used most efficiently, our government agencies need oversight and reevaluation in how taxpayer dollars are being allocated. However, chaotic, indiscriminate mass purges are not effectively accomplishing this. Instead, essential workers are being robbed of their livelihoods at the expense of public safety and wellbeing.

Today, there are many crucial facets of safety and welfare that are under siege thus risking the health of American society. In the next weeks, the American people will observe how the checks and balances of our Co- Equal branches of government will handle the overreach of the Trump Administration. So, next time you’re strolling down your grocery aisle, keep in mind the importance of those who put in the work and research in order for us to stay happy, healthy and hungry, because without them, who knows where we’d be.