As we share this first edition of our constituent newsletter, I’ve been reflecting on where it all started.
I began working in food safety policy at the same time a small but determined group of families—each deeply affected by foodborne illness—came together to create STOP. What started as a collective response to personal tragedy has grown into a national voice for safer food. Today, more than thirty years later, I have the privilege of leading this extraordinary organization.
From the very beginning, our mission has been clear: advocate for science-based policies that put public health first. That work continues today, whether we are opposing the expanded availability of raw milk or supporting stronger, evidence-based practices for growing and harvesting fresh produce.
As we launch this newsletter, we want to do more than share updates. We want to build a stronger, more connected community.
Our constituents have always been our greatest strength. Your experiences have the power to turn individual hardship into collective action and real change.
Your voice matters.
Stop Foodborne Illness remains focused on protecting public health and advocating for a stronger, more accountable food safety system. This system should prioritize prevention, transparency, and the people most at risk. These include infants who rely on formula as their sole source of nutrition, older
Americans who contract serious Listeria infections from deli meat, and consumers with compromised immune systems who cannot effectively fight a foodborne infection.
In this issue, we highlight our:
• Continued advocacy to strengthen oversight of powdered infant formula after yet another outbreak.
• The work of STOP and coalition partners urging enforceable limits on Salmonella in poultry.
• Our petition challenging the FDA to change its interpretation of why it only releases company names linked to an outbreak when there is a recall.
• A successful FOIA appeal seeking background materials shared with a National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods subcommittee reviewing Cronobacter in infant formula.
• The addition of five new members to the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness in the last six months, bringing total membership to 24 companies and associations.
• Growing concerns about how staffing reductions at FDA and USDA may affect food safety oversight.
Together, these issues underscore why STOP's voice and your support remain critical as we move forward in 2026.
The ongoing outbreak of infant botulism linked to ByHeart powdered infant formula raises renewed concerns about the safety of these products, which are the sole source of nutrition for many infants. This follows the 2022 Abbott outbreak involving Cronobacter and Salmonella.
STOP joined other consumer advocates in a letter urging FDA to strengthen its oversight of powdered infant formula, including expanding Operation Stork Speed (FDA's infant formula initiative) to address microbiological contamination and increasing inspection frequency at formula facilities.
FDA has since identified powdered whole milk, an ingredient used in ByHeart formula, as a potential source of contamination. STOP will continue to prioritize infant formula safety and push for stronger protections.
Although a proposal to establish such limits was withdrawn in April 2025, we remain engaged.
STOP provided verbal comments at USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) January public meeting on reducing Salmonella in poultry and submitted written comments outlining needed actions.
FDA’s Human Foods Program - Reports indicate significant staffing reductions in Oct 2025, including experts in infant formula, toxicology, microbiology, and inspections. While some layoffs were later reversed following public concern and media scrutiny, the long-term impact on food safety oversight remains troubling.
USDA's Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) experienced an 8% workforce reduction in early 2025, including losses among inspectors and investigators.
STOP (and our partners) have raised concerns about increased workloads, inspector burnout, and the agencies' ability to maintain effective inspections and outbreak response.
Share Your Story
If you are interested in sharing your foodborne illness story we'd consider it an honor to include it on our website. If you've already shared your story, but want to make an update -- people who read about our constituents' experiences often ask, "What is the rest of the story? How are they now?"
Focus Groups
If you want to find out more about our focus groups and how to get involved please get in touch.
Vanessa Coffman, director of the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness, said ... “Rather than focusing on minimizing the number of recalls, we should take every opportunity to get notices out faster, in formats that consumers actually read, make recalls notices easier for consumers to understand, and ensure that recalls are effective, meaning the recalled product is removed from store shelves and out of consumer’s cupboards."
