When Safety Is Optional: Why Weakening the FDA Should Scare Every Parent—and Every American

 FDA regulations, food safety, infant formula, federal oversight, global trade, regulatory law, public health, agency reform

As a lawyer, a policy-watcher, and—most importantly—a mother, I’ve followed developments at the FDA and other federal regulatory agencies for years. But recently, this issue hit home in a new way: I had to start supplementing formula for my almost 11-month-old baby.

Suddenly, what once felt like distant headlines about agency reform and administrative law became deeply personal. It’s not just about regulatory theory anymore—it’s about whether I can trust what I’m putting in my baby’s bottle.

The Quiet Dismantling of Regulatory Agencies

Over the past decade, but especially in recent years, there has been a systematic weakening of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as well as related agencies like the USDA and EPA. This comes in the form of:

• Budget cuts

• Leadership instability

• Political interference in scientific review

• Industry-driven deregulation

• Reduced enforcement actions

  
  

For example, the FDA’s food inspection frequency has dropped significantly in the past five years, according to data from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Similar stories are unfolding in environmental health, drug approvals, and food labeling.

More Than Just Biomedical Risk: A Legal and Structural Crisis

Yes, biomedical risks are real—especially when it comes to infant formula safety, foodborne illnesses, and drug quality. But there are long-term structural and legal consequences to this dismantling that should concern every American:

• The erosion of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) threatens the ability of agencies to regulate efficiently.

• Courts are increasingly hostile to Chevron deference, undermining the legal authority of experts.

• Regulatory capture—where industries shape the rules meant to govern them—is becoming normalized.

These changes don’t just affect bureaucrats in D.C.—they affect whether the food on your child’s plate is safe. They affect whether the medication in your parents’ cabinet was tested thoroughly. They affect whether justice is even possible when something goes wrong.

The Global Trade Web: Risk, Outsourced

It’s impossible to separate these domestic trends from what’s happening globally.

The U.S. imports vast quantities of infant formula ingredients, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), and processed foods from countries with varying safety standards. And yet, as our own inspection infrastructure shrinks, so too does our ability to enforce safety in the global supply chain.

This outsourcing of production without parallel oversight is a recipe for disaster.

• The 2022 Abbott formula recall and shortage exposed the fragility of our infant nutrition system.

• Imported drug recalls are up, according to FDA recall data.

• Foodborne outbreaks often trace back to foreign suppliers with limited inspection.

When federal agencies lose funding and power, these risks multiply. Worse still, our weakened posture emboldens other governments and corporations to lower their own standards.

What Needs to Change: A Regulatory Roadmap

We can’t afford to let public health become collateral damage in the war on regulation. Here’s what we need:

1. Rebuild Agency Infrastructure

Recruit scientific experts. Restore staffing to pre-cut levels. Invest in modern data and testing technologies.

2. Reassert Legal Oversight

Support Congressional efforts to defend agency rulemaking under the APA. Resist judicial efforts to dismantle the regulatory state via cases like Loper Bright v. Raimondo.

3. Modernize Global Supply Chain Oversight

Fund foreign inspections, require traceability protocols, and enforce international harmonized safety standards.

4. Enforce with Teeth

Bring back rigorous inspections and penalties. Transparency without enforcement is toothless.

5. Educate and Build Public Trust

Fight misinformation with plain-language guidance. Engage with consumers and parents like me—people who want to trust the system but need real accountability to do so.

From My Family to Yours: Why This Fight Matters

When I mix up a bottle of formula, I don’t want to play detective. I want to trust that the product has been vetted by rigorous, independent science—not rushed through a loophole or outsourced to the lowest bidder. I want to know that, as a parent, I'm protected—not abandoned.

And I’m not alone. If you’ve ever relied on packaged food, medicine, or clean water—you have a stake in this too.

We need to stop pretending that food safety and drug oversight are optional. Because when safety becomes optional, it’s the most vulnerable who suffer first—and the hardest.

Want to learn more or take action?

• Visit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI)