FDA Faces Challenges in Meeting Foreign Food Inspection Targets Amidst Outbreaks
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been conducting an average of 917 inspections of foreign food facilities annually from fiscal 2018 to 2023, significantly below the federal target of 19,200 inspections per year. This shortfall, highlighted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), is attributed to limited workforce capacity and the resource-intensive nature of foreign inspections. The FDA has acknowledged the target as unrealistic but has not proposed an alternative. This issue is underscored by ongoing foodborne illness outbreaks linked to imported produce, including a cyclospora outbreak affecting over 20,000 people and a Salmonella Javiana outbreak linked to jalapeño peppers from Mexico. 
