Happy Friday, and welcome to Food Fix. It’s hard to believe, but this newsletter officially turns four this weekend! Thanks so much for being here.
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Scheduling note: Food Fix is taking two weeks off for August recess. Next week, paid subscribers will get Tuesday’s newsletter as usual, and then we’ll be on “alert status.” That means paid subscribers will only get an alert in their inboxes if something really big happens.
Food Fix on air: I recently joined KCRW’s Good Food for a discussion with Marion Nestle and Evan Kleiman about cyclospora and other food policy headlines, and I chatted with Gabi Barkho over at the Modern Retail podcast about how food retailers are trying to communicate with consumers amid the current disaster (note: podcast episode releases Saturday). We also had a new episode of Forked out this week with Kelly Ryerson, a key voice within the MAHA movement.
As always, I welcome your feedback. Send me your thoughts by replying to this email, or drop me a line: helena@foodfix.co.
Alright, let’s get to it –
Helena
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Most Americans lack confidence in government’s oversight of food safety
A majority of American voters do not have confidence in the government’s oversight of food safety, according to a new Quinnipiac University national poll released this week.
Self-identified registered voters were asked how much confidence they have in government oversight of food safety in the U.S., and the results were not good: 55 percent of voters say they do not have much confidence, or no confidence, in government oversight of food safety (30 percent actually said they have no confidence: ouch).
The poll, which included 963 respondents and was conducted last week, has a margin of error of +/- 4.1 percentage points.
Parasite blues: At first blush, this data point makes a lot of sense: We’re in the midst of the worst U.S. foodborne illness outbreaks in more than three decades. We’re facing a massive surge of cyclospora cases (likely caused by multiple outbreaks at once) unlike anything we’ve ever seen by a long shot. New data from CDC indicates that we’ve already seen 18,000 cases so far this summer. (Food safety lawyer Bill Marler has the count at more than 20,000 today.)
This is a disastrous situation, and there’s no indication that we have it under control. But the Quinnipiac poll is actually just the latest data point in a bigger trend: American trust in the government’s ability to ensure food safety has been cratering for the past several years.
Between about 1996 and 2006, roughly eight in ten Americans expressed confidence in the federal government’s food safety oversight, per Gallup polling. That confidence dropped somewhat after some bad foodborne illness outbreaks in 2006 and 2007, but overall confidence held fairly steady until about 2019. We’ve seen a major decline since then, and confidence is now hitting record lows. Surveys by the International Food Information Council have found much the same.
I asked Frank Yiannas, former deputy commissioner for foods at FDA, about the polling released this week. Yiannas used to lead food safety at Walmart, so he has a lot of experience on the front lines of retail and navigating the mechanics of trying to feed millions of consumers as safely as possible.
“The most important license a food producer holds isn’t issued by the government, although regulators play a critical role,” Yiannas told me this week. “It’s the social license consumers grant food businesses through their trust in the safety and quality of the food they buy. When that trust declines, we should take it seriously, not dismiss it.”
Yiannas argues that we need to modernize and improve the food safety system to help earn back consumer trust.
What’s driving the bad vibes? There’s likely multiple things going on here: We’ve seen a steady drumbeat of foodborne illness outbreaks and product recalls over time. Since 2019, there have been a couple particularly jarring incidents. In 2022, we had a lengthy national infant formula crisis sparked by a massive recall of formula over Cronobacter sakazakii contamination concerns. In 2023, hundreds of children got lead poisoning from applesauce pouches made with tainted cinnamon. Last fall, nearly 50 babies were hospitalized with botulism tied to contaminated infant formula. We just recently saw another, smaller botulism outbreak tied to infant formula. As an aside, it’s no wonder that some polls have found confidence has dropped the most among parents of young children.
Right alongside these food safety failures, there’s growing awareness and concern about food chemicals, from additives to food packaging and pesticides. There’s also increasing attention being paid to just how costly and damaging diet-related diseases are.
The fact that key MAHA issues poll extremely well across party lines tells us that people are simply dissatisfied with the status quo. We’ve seen polling that Americans broadly want more government intervention on these issues, regardless of party identification. The vibes are bad – and we’re not even talking here about the high price of food, which is also a massive concern for consumers right now.
Produce pullback: Consumer confidence matters, for many reasons. It shapes how we feel about the food system (and our country), how we spend money and, ultimately, how we eat. We’re already seeing signs that cratering confidence is shifting habits. A new poll by YouGov and CBS News found that 40 percent of Americans say they are buying and eating less produce due to the cyclospora outbreak(s).
This comes as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his allies have been arguing that Americans are starting to shift their buying habits away from ultra-processed foods due to the new dietary guidelines. Any progress that may have been made could be erased, and then some, by the current disaster.
The International Fresh Produce Association said in a statement this week that initial data indicates there have been declines “in both dollar and unit sales across fresh produce compared with previous weeks, with salads and leafy greens experiencing the largest decreases.”
“Maintaining consumer confidence is critical to the health of the produce industry and to public health goals that encourage fruit and vegetable consumption,” the trade association said. “IFPA remains focused on supporting continuous improvement in food safety, advancing traceability, and helping ensure consumers have confidence in the safety and availability of fresh produce.”
UPF definition soon? While we’re talking about a potential shift away from ultra-processed foods (UPF)… I’m hearing more chatter that the federal government’s definition could be sent to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review in the coming weeks – a step forward for a key policy initiative that’s been bogged down by bureaucracy and heavy industry opposition. I still think it could be a while before this is released publicly, but we’ll see.
Get cooking: While we await an official UPF definition, Kennedy continues to largely avoid the subject of cyclospora and food safety generally (aside from his longtime focus on chemical additives and pesticides). The secretary, for his part, this week launched a new cooking show called The Real Food Show.
The first episode features a tutorial on how to prepare wild Alaska salmon cakes with an arugula salad. (Sidenote: This had me flashing back to when then-candidate Barack Obama was mocked by Republicans as an elitist snob for bringing up the high price of arugula on the campaign trail in 2007. Oh, how times have changed!)
Bottom line: Whether it’s arugula or iceberg lettuce, American consumers are going to need to trust that their fruits and vegetables are safe to eat if we have any chance of getting them to eat more of them.
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What I’m reading
Publix expands frozen berries recall due to E. coli risk in 8 states. See all the affected products (Today). “Publix is recalling all lots of GreenWise organic frozen blueberries and mixed berries from stores in eight states because they may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria,” Sarah Jacoby reports. “The issue started a few weeks ago when the company Frutas y Hortalizas del Sur S.A. of San Carlos, Chile, recalled one lot of the GreenWise frozen blueberries that had been linked to an E. coli outbreak, the CDC explained. As of July 6, 2026, the outbreak had caused 12 cases in two states, including four hospitalizations, the CDC says. Now, after collecting more epidemiological data, Publix is recalling additional GreenWise products for possible E. coli contamination, including certain lots of frozen blueberries and mixed berries.”
Citing ‘glitches,’ Boozman pushes farm bill text release timeline (Politico Pro). “Senate Agriculture Chair John Boozman (R-Ark.) is delaying the formal release of his farm bill legislative text – originally expected to be unveiled [Thursday] – to Friday or Saturday as senators work through what he described as a ‘couple of glitches’ with the package,” reports Grace Yarrow. “Senate Agriculture Committee staff members were scheduled to brief agriculture lobbyists and trade groups about the farm bill’s contents on Thursday, but canceled the event without providing an explanation for the delay, according to multiple people familiar with the matter who spoke to POLITICO on condition of anonymity to describe the abrupt change.”
Senate considering a delay in SNAP cost shift to states (NOTUS). “The chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee said Thursday he is considering some respite for states that must start sharing costs under SNAP,” reports Tyler Spence. “Sen. John Boozman (R-Arkansas) told NOTUS the issue is part of negotiations with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota), the panel’s ranking member, on a way forward on the Senate’s version of a farm bill. Democrats have asked for a two-year delay in the cost shift to states with SNAP payment error rates above 6%, an increase scheduled to start next year. Republicans have preferred to leave the changes made to SNAP in a 2025 reconciliation law. Boozman didn’t specify how long a delay could be, only referring to it as ‘short-term.’”
Senate health committee advances nomination of C.D.C. director (New York Times). “The Senate health committee on Thursday advanced the nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz, President [Donald] Trump’s pick for director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for a full Senate vote,” reports Apoorva Mandavilli. “The committee’s Republican members and Senator Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, all voted in favor of her candidacy, with the remaining Democrats opposed. Dr. Schwartz is Mr. Trump’s third nominee in less than two years to lead the C.D.C. A deputy surgeon general in the first Trump administration, she has publicly supported childhood vaccines, and was viewed as a highly qualified, mainstream choice.”
How a daily barrage of chemicals in our food makes us more likely to get sick over time (EDF). “Near-constant exposure to chemicals in food is taking a toll on Americans’ health at all stages of development,” Maria Doa, Liora Fiksel and Maricel Maffini write. “Where is the FDA? From the first cup of coffee to the last late-night snack, Americans are exposed to hundreds or even thousands of chemicals in their food every day. These chemicals enter our diet as ingredients, additives and colors or from leaching from processing equipment and packaging. Some are harmless, but many are toxic, linked to serious health problems, including cancer. In a new joint report by experts at EDF and Consumer Reports, we look at how the cumulative effects of chemicals in food harm our health over time and explain why the FDA already has the legal authority – and responsibility – to protect us.”
Public health needs MAHA (The Atlantic). “Since Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took office, more than a year ago, I’ve been trying to understand the MAHA movement from the inside,” writes Craig Spencer. “When I share what I’m hearing with my colleagues in medicine and public health, many chide that engaging with MAHA is completely pointless. For them, the whole movement is nothing more than a subversive anti-vaccine, anti-science syndicate. That assumption is wrong. MAHA is an opportunity, and one the public-health sector – academics, doctors, and leaders of advocacy groups – cannot afford to squander. Yes, MAHA’s anti-vax wing is very loud and litigious. But for many in the MAHA movement, their top issues lie elsewhere: environmental pollutants, the cost of health care, and a bone-deep conviction that health institutions have been captured by the industries they’re supposed to regulate. These are not fringe, unscientific concerns. They are concerns that millions of Americans have been angry about for decades, long before the MAHA label even existed.”
‘If all else fails, sue’: how ultra-processed food firms are using the courts to obstruct health rules (The Guardian). “UPF is linked to harm in every major organ system of the human body and poses a seismic threat to global health. Worldwide consumption is rising and UPF now makes up as much as half the average diet in many countries, including the UK, the US and Australia,” writes Andrew Gregory. “Governments around the world have adopted measures to fight back and safeguard the health of children and adults. … Publicly, the world’s biggest UPF companies insist they support the policies, are committed to helping consumers make informed choices and want to be part of the solution. But an investigation by the Guardian, in collaboration with academics, the non-profit newsroom Lighthouse Reports and a coalition of media partners across four continents, found many of these same companies are taking governments to court to overturn, weaken or delay the policies. In total, 235 lawsuits were lodged over health policies targeting UPF in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, the US and the UK from 2010 to 2025, the investigation found.”
Cyclospora hunt highlights need for delayed food-tracing rule. (Bloomberg Law). “The outbreak of cyclospora highlights the necessity of a rule delayed by the Trump administration that former FDA officials, scientists, and consumer advocates say may have helped limit the disease’s scope,” writes Skye Witley. “Federal regulators last year proposed giving food suppliers more time to comply with a final rule originally set to go into effect in January 2026 facilitating quicker identification and removal of foods with higher contamination risk, citing the complexity of preparing thousands of supply chain players. The rule, now set to take effect in July 2028, would require that companies maintain more specific records tracking how foods moved through their supply chains and compress the deadline they have to share data with federal regulators to 24 hours. Among the foods that will eventually be subject to greater scrutiny under that rule is iceberg lettuce, which is the subject of a voluntary recall by Taylor Farms and the FDA’s cyclospora investigation.”
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