As we look to a post-pandemic world (hopefully, sooner than later), this article from Chemicals Director of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) caught my eye. It lists 10 things that he believes the new FDA Commissioner should do to keep unsafe chemicals out of our food. 

None of these suggestions are new. As the article notes, these issues have been discussed in the food and beverage space for years -- in some cases, for a decade or more. But it is clear that those who share the perspective of the EDF believe that the new FDA commissioner may have a more sympathetic ear to these ideas that some of their predecessors. Of greatest interest to the industry is the underlying them in these suggestions that any chemical levels in food, even those that are considered "background" or are unavoidable in the world we live in, might somehow be unsafe.

Like many in the industry, Michael Best will be watching the "new FDA" under the Biden administration to see how many of these suggested priorities, if any, ultimately become policy objectives.