The FDA communications teams have been trashed by the Trump administration. Likewise, the Freedom of Informaction Act (FOIA) response teams and policy teams.

What does this mean for public health and food safety?

Siobhan DeLancey, a 21-year veteran of the FDA, who for the last several years managed communications for the agency’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM), didn’t mince words in her recent Opinion piece in Food Safety News.

There will be no more safety alerts, no bird flu updates, no information detailing what we’re doing about PFAS. No leverage to spur a recalcitrant company to do the right thing. No news about pesticides or antimicrobial use.

She went on to say,

[G]ood luck relying on a timely response to your FOIA request to reveal the inner working of the agency or gleaning information from the Federal Register. Guidances for Industry on how to comply with the law? Doubt you’ll see many in the next four years, and even if one gets through deregulation, how will you know?

On April 22, 2025, pet food safety advocate, Sue Thixton, reported in Truth About Pet Food that a pet owner had arranged for two samples of Answers Pet Food to be tested for the presence of gentamicin by an independent laboratory.

Gentamicin is an antibiotic whose use is discouraged in cattle due to its long retention time in animal tissue. The US Federal Register does not cite a permitted level of gentamicin in beef tissue. Canada lists a maximum residue limit of 0.1 parts per million (ppm) in muscle of cattle.

One of the samples—ANSWERS PET FOOD STRAIGHT BEEF—was found by the lab to contain 320.6 ppm of gentamicin. The second sample—Answers Pet Food Detailed Beef—contained 76.2 ppm.

According to Thixton’s post, multiple pets became very ill, but survived. She added, “It is unknown if a recall will be issued on these products.”

The following day, Answers Pet Food posted a multi-paragraph rebuttal on its Facebook page, calling the pet owner’s claim “baseless.”

Why is this story relevant?

Prior to January 22, 2025, when Trump took office, it would have been possible to contact the CVM communications team by email or phone, find out whether or not the agency was aware of the situation and, if necessary, point them to the posted report.

On several occasions in the past, eFoodAlert has done exactly that, with the result that a problem of which the CVM was previously unaware became flagged for follow-up.

One such occasion was the concern raised by multiple pet owners early in 2024 about Purina pet foods.

Now this avenue no longer exists.

There is no longer any way of communicating informally with the CVM or with other areas within the FDA.

There is no longer any way of learning in a timely fashion whether the CVM knows about this incident.

Even if the CVM investigates and discovers a problem, unless the company recalls the product, there will be no alert to consumers, because there is no one left to write the notice.

While it may still be possible to submit a Freedom of Information Act request to learn whether other pet owners have reported similary issues or whether there was an inspection of the manufacturing facility, the chances of receiving a timely response to such a request have dropped to nil, due to lack of personnel.

A final word

I have had dealings with Siobhan DeLancey and various other members of the FDA’s communications teams for almost two decades. I have always found them to be professional, thoroughly invested in the importance of their work, and eager to furnish whatever information and explanations permitted within the bounds of confidentiality requirements.

Without the assistance of Siobhan and her colleagues, and without the work of the FOIA teams, I never would have been able to research and write my two food safety books.

I shall leave the final word to Siobhan (again, from her Food Safety News piece):

We should all be frightened when the ability to communicate is taken away. The administration has become braver about suing or otherwise intimidating news media that run stories counter to its narrative. Now, it’s muzzling its own public servants. How long before it comes for you?

Interested in learning more about food safety and the history of foodborne disease outbreaks and investigations?

Click on the link to listen to a short excerpt, then follow the buy links to add a digital, print or audio copy to your personal library.

“A complete and compelling account of the hidden and not-so-hidden ways the food we give our beloved pets can be contaminated.” – JoNel Aleccia, Health Reporter, Food & Nutrition, The Associated Press.

“An invaluable resource for busy pet owners” – Food Safety News