The USDA, FDA and Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) have made a formal agreement to jointly oversee the production of human food products derived from the cells of livestock and poultry.
FSIS and FDA have reached an agreement to address the regulatory oversight of human food produced using new technology. The agreement details on the oversight roles and responsibilities for both agencies and how the agencies will collaborate to regulate the development and entry of these products into commerce. This shared approach will ensure that cell-cultured products derived from the cell lines of livestock and poultry are produced safety and are accurately labeled.
"Consumers trust the USDA mark of inspection to ensure safe, wholesome and accurately labeled products," says USDA deputy under secretary for food safety Mindy Brashears. "We look forward to continued collaboration with FDA and our stakeholders to safely regulate these new products and ensure parity in labeling."
With a regulatory regime, the agencies will ensure safety and proper labeling of cell-cultured human food products while also encouraging innovation. The FDA will oversee cell collection, cell banks and cell growth and differentiation. A transition from FDA to FSIS oversight will occur during the cell harvest stage, and FSIS will oversee the production and labeling of human food products derived from the cells over livestock and poultry.