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The FDA and USDA have not issued a federally recognized, uniform definition of ultra-processed foods, despite requesting public input more than a year ago. Food Safety News reported on Oct. 25 that the agencies had already missed an April deadline; a new timetable and the reason for the delay were not provided.
The FDA and USDA have not established a uniform federal definition of ultra-processed foods, according to an Oct. 25 report by Food Safety News, more than a year after the agencies sought public input. The report says the agencies missed an April deadline for developing a definition, leaving consumers, researchers and food businesses without a shared federal standard.
More than a year before the report, the FDA and USDA issued a Request for Information asking for public input to help establish a federally recognized definition of ultra-processed foods, often abbreviated as UPF. The agencies’ request began a process to consider how the category should be defined, but it did not itself create a binding standard.
Food Safety News said the agencies had not adopted a definition by the time of publication and had missed the previous April’s deadline. The report did not identify a revised deadline, explain the agencies’ internal timeline or describe any final decision on what criteria a federal definition would use.
The report presents defining UPF as a difficult task. It draws a comparison to the phrase “I know it when I see it,” used by Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart in 1964 in discussing a threshold for obscenity. That is an analogy in the report, not language attributed to the FDA or USDA about their own process.
A federal definition could give government agencies, researchers and consumers a common basis for identifying the foods included in the category. Without one, different studies, policies or public discussions may use different criteria, making their findings and recommendations harder to compare. The source report does not describe a specific federal policy that is waiting on the definition, so the practical effects of the delay remain uncertain.
The issue also matters to food companies and public health officials because a formal definition could shape how UPF is discussed in research or future government work. However, the available report does not say that the agencies have proposed labeling rules, restrictions or other requirements. The confirmed development is narrower: a requested definition remains outstanding after the reported deadline passed.
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How the Federal Definition Process Began
The FDA and USDA began soliciting input through a Request for Information more than a year before the Oct. 25 report. Such a request seeks views and information; it is not, on its own, a final rule or a completed definition. The agencies were seeking a uniform, federally recognized description of ultra-processed foods, but the supplied report does not give details of the comments received or outline competing definitions.
The Food Safety News item appeared as part of its Sunday Edition, a roundup that also covered food safety developments involving outbreaks, shellfish harvesting and poultry controls. Its UPF section focused on the missed deadline and the difficulty of reaching a definition. No agency statement or response to the report was included in the supplied material.
““I know it when I see it.””
— Food Safety News
The Definition and Timetable Remain Open
The source material does not say when the FDA and USDA now expect to act, whether they plan to publish a draft definition, or what criteria they are considering. It also does not provide the agencies’ explanation for missing the April deadline or report any formal announcement that the work has been abandoned.
It remains unclear how the agencies would distinguish ultra-processed foods from other food categories, and whether a future definition would be used for research, guidance, regulation or more than one purpose. Those questions should not be treated as settled by the fact that the agencies requested public input.
Watch for an Agency Update
The next concrete development would be an update from the FDA or USDA on the status of their work, including a revised schedule or a proposal for a uniform definition. The supplied report does not name a scheduled release, public meeting or other upcoming milestone.
Until the agencies publish further details, the status is that public input was solicited, the reported April deadline passed, and no shared federal definition had been issued as of the Oct. 25 report. Any claim about a specific definition or policy outcome would require additional confirmation from the agencies.
Key Questions
What is the news about ultra-processed foods?
Food Safety News reported on Oct. 25 that the FDA and USDA had not issued a uniform federal definition of ultra-processed foods, more than a year after seeking public input.
What deadline did the agencies miss?
The report says the agencies missed the previous April’s deadline for coming up with a definition. It does not give a revised deadline.
Have the FDA and USDA abandoned the effort?
The supplied report does not say the agencies abandoned the work. It says they had not issued a definition and describes the task as difficult.
What would a federal definition change?
A shared definition could give researchers, government agencies and consumers a common basis for discussing the category. The report does not identify any specific rule or program that would follow from it.
When will the definition be released?
No release date or new timetable is provided in the source material. An agency update would be needed to establish the next milestone.
Source: rss
