“Food safety is everyone’s business.” The official slogan of World Food Safety Day is the core principle of Consumer Brands members, who work 365 days a year to provide access to safe and affordable food to citizens around the globe.   

Today, World Food Safety Day serves as a reminder of how America’s advancements on food safety continue to shape efforts to protect consumers and ensure confidence in the food supply. 

First celebrated in 2019, this global campaign draws attention and inspires action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks that contribute to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development. It’s also an opportunity to recognize that America has one of the safest and most highly regulated food supplies in the world. For the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, safety is non-negotiable.  

In honor of World Food Safety Day, June 7, we are pleased to share a few facts you might not have known about that contribute to food safety in the United States. 

In the United States, many modern day food safety standards trace their origins to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, a landmark law passed in response to widespread concerns about contaminated and mislabeled food products during the Progressive Era. This eventually led to the creation of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Over the twentieth century, additional legislation, including the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938, which provided the foundations for manufacturer responsibility for the safety and labeling of their products, and the Food Additives Amendment of 1958, which required manufacturers of food additives to demonstrate their safety prior to their entry into the food supply, were implemented.  

The biggest shift in food safety legislation came with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) of 2011, when FDA shifted its focus from responding to foodborne outbreaks to preventing them. FSMA has seven foundational rules which our manufacturers must comply with: Preventive Controls for Human Food, Preventive Controls for Animal Food, the Sanitary Transportation Rule, the Produce Safety Rule, the Intentional Adulteration Rule, the Foreign Supplier Verification Rule and the Third-Party Certification Rule. Industry engaged closely with FDA in identifying areas of food safety concern, improvement and good manufacturing practices as the Agency worked on the rules. These measures strengthened inspection systems, labeling requirements, and preventive safety measures with science-based oversight throughout the food production process. Following the finalization of the rules, industry continues to work closely with FDA to give policy makers details on the day-to-day practicalities they experience in manufacturing and distribution. This feedback enhances the Agency’s ability to effectively address food safety. Industry is working with FDA now to assist with implementation of the FSMA Food Traceability Rule which aims to allow for faster identification and rapid removal of potentially contaminated food from the market.  

The industry has also initiated and instigated the development of food safety measures that have been embraced by the government and moved the needle on food safety. For example, the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) management system was developed in a joint effort of Pillsbury, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the U.S. Army labs in the 1960s. HACCP is now a part of both FDA and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulations.  

In addition to providing feedback to United States regulators, the CPG industry participates with governments and academia in international food safety standards setting organizations like Codex Alimentarious and non-profit standards setting organizations like GS-1. Further, food safety culture, developing individual ownership and pride in the safety of food and holding others accountable and celebrating accomplishments, is a value that our members embody within their organizations and share best practices on with government, non-profits and academia.  

Food processing also plays a critical role in keeping packaged foods safe. In today’s busy times, consumers want convenient access to nutritious, affordable, accessible and safe food. Food processing makes this possible by turning fresh farm goods into consumable food products. Standard processing methods include fermentation, dehydration, preservation, pasteurization and the use of preservatives to slow or stop the growth of certain pathogens. Processing could also include adding vital nutrients like vitamins. These steps help make foods more nutrient-dense while remaining affordable, safe and shelf-stable supporting modernized food safety systems that emphasize nutritional quality, contamination prevention, extended product stability, and broader consumer access to safe food products. Processing also increases accessibility, offering consumers more choices to fit their individual lifestyles without having to compromise on taste, convenience or affordability.  

Consumer Brands’ website on food processing facts is a great resource for more information on how processing contributes to food safety.  

On World Food Safety Day and all year round, the CPG industry is committed to delivering safe, affordable and convenient products along with the information consumers need to make informed choices.