Lifestyle Sports: Latest from Food Politics: What's going on at the FDA? Nothing good, apparently.

By Marion Nestle

March 11 2026

What’s going on at the FDA? Nothing good, apparently.

Two recent reports say that the FDA is a mess as a result of staff cuts, loss of expertise, and leadership vacuums—a national tragedy by any criterion.

I. From Timothy Inklebarger at FoodNavigator-USA: Trump purge at FDA and USDA triggers food safety ‘brain drain’: Government data shows deep staff cuts as food safety leaders warn of fewer inspectors, loss of institutional knowledge and delays in lab and outbreak work… Read more

The US Office of Personnel Management’s Federal Workforce Data tool shows the Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services are among the hardest hit, losing 22,253 and 17,406 jobs, respectively, since the beginning of 2025.

II. ͏ From Gary Schwitzer’s Health News Review:FDA staff “rife with mistrust and paranoia”: Concern about staff “trampled on…perpetual uncertainty…chaos…no stability.”

It didn’t take Dr. Richard Pazdur long to see that he wanted out of Marty Makary’s FDA. The 26-year FDA veteran was hired in November to be director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. He resigned in December. Why? …Pazdur, looking distraught, spoke of an agency crumbling, with leaders making up rules as they went and longtime, experienced staff members leaving after layoffs and perpetual uncertainty left them unable to do their jobs. At different points, he described “chaos” at the agency with staff having gone through “a lot of trauma,” and said “you do not have stability.

Comment

If your purpose is to dismantle government, this is how you do it. As I said, a national tragedy.

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