ARRC Supports Reinstatement of USDA Advisory Committees

The Alliance for Recall Ready Communities has joined the signees below in calling for the reinstatement of two key USDA advisory committees: the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) and the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI).

The full text of the letter is included below:

April 8, 2025

The Honorable Brooke Rollins

Secretary

United States Department of Agriculture

1400 Independence Ave S.W.

Washington, DC 20250

Dear Secretary Rollins,

As a coalition of consumer, industry and public health stakeholder groups with a vested interest in food safety, nutrition and chronic disease, we urge you to reinstate the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) and National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI).

The NACMCF, established by the Reagan Administration in 1988, provides impartial, scientific advice and recommendations to USDA on microbiological and public health issues relative to the safety of the U.S. food supply while NACMPI, established by the Nixon Administration in 1971, advises on matters affecting federal and state inspection program activities.

Over their decades of operation, both committees have had substantial and lasting impacts on food safety policy, regulatory effectiveness, industry practices, and consumer protection. Notably:

• NACMCF provided foundational scientific guidance leading to the adoption of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system, now the cornerstone for preventive food safety across industries. This has significantly reduced outbreaks linked to pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, and Listeria monocytogenes, protecting millions of American consumers annually. Additionally, NACMCF’s guidance on pathogen testing protocols, microbial risk assessment, and microbiological standards has directly enhanced regulatory effectiveness and industry practices nationwide.

• NACMPI has played an instrumental role in strengthening inspection processes, leading to substantial improvements in meat and poultry safety oversight. For example, its recommendations informed USDA’s regulatory updates on inspection modernization, significantly decreasing contamination rates in poultry products and driving down the incidence of foodborne illnesses. NACMPI's input has also facilitated more streamlined federal-state inspection coordination, leading to more effective resource allocation and greater consumer protection.

These advisory committees are comprised of volunteer representatives from across the stakeholder spectrum—industry, consumers, public health, academia—who provided impartial, scientific advice and recommendations to USDA, the FDA, and the CDC. According to one reference, the budget for NACMCF is $225,000 and NACMPI is $75,000, and the return on investment to the American taxpayer is enormous.

For decades, the work of NACMCF has been widely influential and referenced within many other documents, policies and programs. Regardless of the questions posed to the Committee by the federal agencies, the committees have been responsive and thorough, working quickly, transparently, and analyzing science as the basis of the committee reports. The vetting process for NACMCF and NACMPI members is rigorous, ensuring appropriate range of perspectives to avoid the undue influence of any particular stakeholder group. These principles—reliance on science over politics, transparency, and efficiency—are consistent with the Administration's priorities. The void left by the absence of these committees will limit our public health and food safety agencies from responding to future crises or, better yet, preventing them from happening in the first place.

Given their substantial contributions and minimal relative costs, we strongly encourage you to reinstate both NACMCF and NACMPI promptly. Doing so will help USDA, FDA, and CDC continue their critical missions to safeguard the U.S. food supply and protect public health.

Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully submitted,

Alliance for Recall Ready Communities

American Frozen Food Institute

Antibiotic Resistance Action Center (at GWU)

Center for Environmental Health

Center for Food Safety

Center for Science in the Public Interest

Consumer Brands Association

Consumer Federation of America

Consumer Reports

Food & Water Watch

Food Animal Concerns Trust

Friends of the Earth

Government Accountability Project

Institute for Food Safety & Nutrition Security (at GWU)

International Association for Food Protection

International Dairy Foods Association

National Consumers League

National Pasta Association

National Turkey Federation

NSF

Public Interest Research Group

Recall InfoLink

San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility

STOP Foodborne Illness

Dr. Darin Detwiler

Bill Marler

Dr. Susan Mayne

Dr. Jennifer McEntire

Sharon Natanblut

Dr. Stephen Ostroff

Michael Taylor

Cc:

Mr. Kyle Diamantas, FDA

Dr. Donald Prater, FDA

Dr. Megin Nichols, CDC