The agency that’s supposed to keep our food safe is being stretched too thin. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is facing budget cuts—meaning there are fewer inspectors, fewer checks, and fewer chances to catch problems before someone gets sick.
These cuts aren’t just numbers on a page. They affect real people—including you.
In Philadelphia, PA food isn’t just a necessity, it’s part of our culture. Whether it’s a hoagie from the deli or groceries from the corner store, we trust that food is safe. For years, we could eat those meatball subs from the store without worry—because one of the city’s countless health inspectors had checked to make sure it was safe. But that system that has kept us safe for so many years is quietly breaking down.
No one would knowingly eat something dangerous. But without strong oversight, contaminated food can end up on our plates, often without warning and without the protections we assume are in place.
The FDA has long been an invisible safeguard of public health, working behind the scenes for more than a century, from preventing widespread foodborne illness to responding quickly when something goes wrong. That could mean someone getting sick from contaminated chicken, a child having an allergic reaction to an undeclared allergen, or unsafe imported snacks hitting store shelves. In moments like these, the FDA acts fast to keep people safe. Inspectors, scientists, and public health experts show up every day to protect our food system. This isn’t about a lack of commitment. It’s about giving the system the support it needs to do its job well. But without adequate funding and staffing, even their best efforts can only go so far. I saw the consequences firsthand.
In 2018, my uncle Paul started forgetting words and losing track of conversations. At first, we thought it was stress. He worked in a meat processing plant and already had some health issues. But after a stroke landed him in the hospital, doctors diagnosed him with prion disease, a rare, incurable illness that causes rapid neurological decline and is often linked to eating or handling meat containing infected brain or spinal tissue. Around the same time, two of his coworkers were diagnosed with the same disease. There were no confirmed outbreaks or inspection issues at the facility, and we never got clear answers about how they contracted it. I’m not saying it was caused by the job—but when something that rare happens more than once in the same place, it’s hard not to wonder. I still do.
We watched him fade, his memory slipping, his personality dimming. Watching someone disappear like that is something you don’t forget. At the time, I was a public health student learning about foodborne illness and zoonotic diseases, the kinds that spread from animals to people. I remember sitting in class thinking, this could be one of those cases. That moment changed how I saw my work. Because food safety isn’t just about regulations we often take for granted. It’s personal. It’s about people like my uncle, families like mine and maybe yours, too.
Most people who eat beef will never get prion disease. But that’s not the point. The point is no one ever talked to my uncle about the risks, not even the rare ones. And not just as a patient, but as an employee. He deserved to know what he was handling.
More recently, we’ve seen outbreaks of Salmonella in cantaloupe and onions, Listeria in deli meats and cheese, and other recalls on food sold across the country. These aren’t flukes. They’re failures of a system that works, until it doesn’t.
And the threats aren’t slowing down. Bird flu, especially the H5N1 strain, is spreading in animals and raising concerns about illness through contaminated meat. While it doesn’t easily spread between people, it can still cause serious illness and shouldn’t be ignored. If an outbreak like that spreads further, we’ll need the FDA more than ever. But right now, the very system meant to protect us is being weakened.
If we want a stronger, safer food system, we have to urge lawmakers to fund food safety programs, back policies that prevent illness before it spreads, and stay informed about who’s responsible and what happens when protections fall short.
It also means showing up in our own communities. Talking to neighbors about food safety. Reporting unsafe practices. Supporting the workers who grow, cook, and serve our food. And paying attention to public health decisions like how the city funds inspections, how often restaurants are checked, or how quickly violations are addressed. In Philadelphia, that could mean following Health Department updates, attending hearings, or speaking up when policies affect how food safety is enforced in our neighborhoods.
Food safety is not just a government issue. It’s a family issue. A worker issue. And when it comes to the food on our plates, whether it’s from a processing plant, a restaurant, or a corner store we all have a role to play in making sure the protections we count on are there when we need them.
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Photo courtesy of Vitaly Gariev, Unsplash
