The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has halted its quality control program responsible for testing milk and other dairy products, citing an ongoing transition to a new laboratory.
An FDA spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY on April 22 that the Food Emergency Response Network Proficiency Testing Program is in the process of moving to a different lab, which will enable the continuation of testing operations.
“In the meantime, state and federal labs continue to analyze food samples, and FDA remains committed to working with states to protect the safety of the pasteurized milk supply,” the agency said in a statement.
An internal email from the FDA’s Division of Dairy Safety stated that the proficiency testing program for Grade “A” raw milk and finished products was officially suspended as of April 21.
Program Pause Follows Major Health Department Layoffs
The suspension comes shortly after the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) laid off around 10,000 employees across multiple agencies earlier this month. Affected agencies include the FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Despite the timing, the FDA did not directly link staffing reductions to the pause in the dairy testing program.
Among those laid off were FDA staffers involved in responding to the ongoing bird flu outbreaks, according to former employees and professional organizations.
When questioned about the FDA staffing cuts, an HHS spokesperson pointed to previous public statements and a fact sheet issued by the agency and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
