FDA CDC News
FDA Seeks $7.2 Billion to Protect and Advance Public Health by Enhancing Food Safety and Advancing Medical Product Availability
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it is requesting $7.2 billion as part of the president’s fiscal year (FY) 2024 budget. This funding will allow the agency to continue to leverage new and emerging technologies, recruit and support a highly skilled workforce and adapt oversight to new production and business models. This is work that will have an immediate impact on food, tobacco and medical product safety in this country while also preparing the agency to address rapid innovation across the food and medical products fields. The request includes an increase of $372 million in budget authority — or 10% above the FY 2023 Enacted Level — and a $150 million increase in user fees.
“This year’s funding request builds on our accomplishments and lessons learned over the past year and adds new funding to continue modernizing the FDA and its capabilities for the future. We continue to deliver on a wide range of priorities and have strategically focused our request to ensure our program areas have the funding they need to operate with the highest success for the good of public health,” said FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, M.D. “Our investments to strengthen medical product safety and availability, along with funding for vital oversight of tobacco products continue to be a central focus. The budget also provides a historic investment to strengthen the FDA’s food safety and nutrition capacity—especially for infants and young children, demonstrating the Administration’s ongoing commitment to these responsibilities. As always, our foremost focus is on the well-being of patients and consumers, and we look forward to continuing our work with Congress to help meet the critical public health challenges ahead.”
The FY 2024 request, which covers the period from Oct. 1, 2023, through Sept. 30, 2024, includes new efforts for high priority program areas. Highlights of the agency’s request include:
Enhancing Food Safety, Nutrition and Cosmetics
- $128.2 million in investments in food safety and nutrition modernization, including food labeling and animal food safety oversight. While the agency is in the process of defining its future vision for the Human Foods Program, there is significant need for additional resources to strengthen its foundational food safety and nutrition capacity. The budget seeks to strengthen consumer protection and implement lasting solutions for more efficient operations through continued investments in the New Era of Smarter Food Safety. Building on lessons learned from the infant formula supply chain response, the budget includes funding to modernize infant formula oversight and strengthen efforts to respond to shortages of critical foods, empower consumers to make healthier food choices and reduce exposure to toxic chemicals in the food supply. The budget will also help position the FDA to keep pace with innovative and novel technologies being used to develop animal food ingredients while addressing foundational gaps in the oversight of the animal food industry as these ingredients are combined, packaged, and sold as animal food.
- $5 million toward modernizing oversight of cosmetics. The budget includes new funding for the development of regulations, compliance policies, product registration and listing platforms, adverse event reporting and other activities to start to implement new authorities recently signed into law related to the safety and proper labeling of cosmetic products.
Advancing Access to Safe and Effective Medical Products
- $23 million in additional funds to advance the goal of ending the opioid crisis. Funding will support broader development of opioid overdose reversal treatments and treatments for substance use disorders and enhance regulatory oversight, expand compliance, enforcement and laboratory support. Additionally, the budget request assists in advancing the development, evaluation and market authorizations of related digital health medical devices.
- $11.6 million increase toward improving the medical device supply chain and shortage programs. The agency will continue to build its capabilities to ensure patients have access to medical devices at all times. The budget will allow the FDA to expand efforts to work proactively with medical device companies, health care providers, device distributors, and patients to enhance resiliency in the supply chain of critical medical devices and prevent shortages of critical devices that most often impact vulnerable populations.
- $2.5 million to implement ACT for ALS to foster development of treatments for ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases. To help the FDA implement the ACT for ALS Act, additional funding will strengthen the FDA’s ability to issue new grants and contracts, hire dedicated expert staff and allow the FDA to facilitate access to investigational therapies and medical devices for neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (i.e., ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a progressive and fatal disease).
Reigniting Cancer Moonshot
- $50 million to advance the president’s Cancer Moonshot goals. This funding will advance the President’s Cancer Moonshot, including by expanding resources and collaborations for innovative and new diagnostic and therapeutic products to treat rare cancers, and other efforts to address cancer morbidity and mortality. This budget will enhance efforts to improve evidence generation for underrepresented subgroups in oncology clinical trials, and to support pragmatic and decentralized trials and our sources of evidence through patient-generated data, learnings, and real-world evidence. Additionally, these resources will also assist the FDA’s expansion of its efforts to facilitate the approvals of innovative and new cancer treatments by international regulatory authorities at the time of the FDA’s approval and will foster collaboration of cancer treatments in other countries with standards comparable to the U.S. standard of care.
Strengthening Public Health and Mission Support Capacity
- $10 million in further investments in enterprise data and IT modernization. The budget will expand data exchange capabilities and underlying technology platforms to better meet the challenges of the FDA’s programs and mission-critical responsibilities. Specific focuses include emerging threats, supporting needs for real-time evaluation, and more continuously accessing, analyzing and aggregating multiple sources of information, such as for recalls, adverse events, outbreaks and pandemics.
- $16 million for regulatory and mission support functions within the Office of the Commissioner. These resources will enable the FDA to provide the appropriate crosscutting strategic direction, policy coordination, and business services to ensure that the FDA’s programs operate effectively, efficiently, and are well coordinated. The budget includes funding for the new enterprise transformation effort to improve business process, data and technology management that will allow us to work more efficiently and optimize the use of the vast amount of data that is the foundation of our work.
- $9.4 million for FDA buildings, facilities and infrastructure improvements. The budget includes additional funding to help ensure that the FDA’s offices and laboratories across the country are secure, modern, reliable and cost-effective spaces that empowers the FDA’s workforce to protect and promote the safety and health of American families.
To complement the funding requests, the agency’s budget proposal also includes a package of legislative proposals designed to bolster the FDA’s authorities to further its mission to protect and promote public health. Notable proposals include efforts to:
- Require animal drug sponsors to make post-approval safety-related labeling changes based on new data; develop programs for safe use of certain products; and require post-approval studies based on new safety information that becomes available after approval.
- Provide the FDA the ability to exclude certain products or classes of products that the FDA and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) agree are more appropriately regulated by the EPA as pesticides; and facilitate an orderly transfer of regulatory responsibility from the EPA to the FDA of specified products that are currently registered as pesticides that the two agencies agree are more appropriately regulated by the FDA as animal drugs. The proposed changes would remove regulatory uncertainty and provide clarity to sponsors about which agency intends to regulate a given product or type of products.
- Expand the drug shortage notification requirements to include situations when a drug manufacturer is unlikely to be able to meet an increased demand. Currently, the FDA generally does not receive notice or adequate information from drug manufacturers regarding increases in demand that would position the agency to assist in preventing or mitigating drug shortages.
- Broaden the FDA’s authority to request records or other information in advance of or in lieu of inspections to include all FDA-regulated product areas, explicitly to include food, tobacco products and cosmetic establishments. Currently remote regulatory inspections are limited to drug, device and biomedical research, with only drug assessments requiring mandatory participation. This proposal will promote regulatory compliance and help facilitate certain oversight activities prior to arriving for or instead of an inspection.
- Remove limitations that require manufacturers to notify the FDA about interruptions or discontinuances in the manufacture of certain medical devices only during or in advance of a Public Health Emergency (PHE). Medical device shortages occur in many situations that fall outside of or are unrelated to PHEs, including natural or human-made disasters, recalls, geopolitical conflicts, production shutdowns and cybersecurity incidents. These events can lead to device shortages that significantly impact patient care and jeopardize healthcare worker safety. Therefore, the FDA is seeking the requirement for manufacture notifications at all times, as well as the authority to require and review risk management plans to help ensure that manufacturers are prepared for situations where their ability to manufacture product may be disrupted or may be insufficient to meet demand.
- Expand the FDA’s mandatory recall authority to cover all human and animal drugs. The agency currently has authority to order the recall of controlled substances, biological products, medical devices, tobacco products, cosmetics and foods. The agency lacks mandatory recall authority for other human and animal drugs.
- Enhance tools to help reduce exposure to toxic elements in the food supply, including food consumed by infants and young children. The FDA is seeking new authority to establish binding contamination limits in food and efficiently update such limits as new scientific information becomes available.
- Require industry to test final food products marketed for consumption by infants and children for toxic elements and allow FDA access to those records. This new authority would help the FDA better understand levels of toxic elements in these products, allow the FDA to monitor industry progress in reducing levels of these toxic elements over time and identify where the FDA should devote more time and resources.
- Assess user fees on and collect fees from manufacturers and importers of all tobacco products. The budget also requests an additional $100 million in funding to support regulatory activities including for oversight of e-cigarettes, which currently have high rates of youth use. The additional funding will support hiring more staff and help the FDA strengthen its tobacco product work—including application reviews, compliance and enforcement, policy development and research programs.
Related Information
- FDA Budgets Webpage
- FY 2024 FDA Budget Summary Fact Sheet
- Executive Summary of FY 2024 Legislative Proposals
- HHS Budget in Brief
Author
Last Updated on May 6, 2026 by Daily News Staff
Second Nature Brands has issued a voluntary recall for certain 10-ounce pouches of SECOND NATURE KETO CRUNCH SMART MIX™ after discovering the product may contain undeclared cashews, pistachios, and cherries. For anyone with allergies or severe sensitivities—especially to tree nuts like cashews and pistachios—this is a serious safety issue.
The company says the affected product was distributed nationwide, both in retail stores and through online orders.
Why this matters
Undeclared allergens are one of the most urgent types of food safety alerts because consumers rely on labels to avoid ingredients that can trigger reactions. Second Nature Brands warns that people with allergies or severe sensitivity to cashews, pistachios, other tree nuts, or cherries could face serious or life-threatening allergic reactions if they consume the recalled product.
As of the announcement, no illnesses have been reported.
How to identify the recalled product
Check your pantry (and any recent online snack orders) for the following details:
- Product: SECOND NATURE KETO CRUNCH SMART MIX™
- Size: 10-ounce pouch
- UPC: 077034013405
- Best if used by date: 2/12/2027 (printed on the backside of the pouch)
Only pouches with the “Best if used by 2/12/2027” date are included. Other Best if used by dates are not affected, according to the company.
What happened
Second Nature Brands says the recall began after it was discovered that product containing cashews, pistachios, and cherries was placed into packaging that did not disclose those allergens. The company reports that a follow-up investigation indicates the issue was caused by a temporary breakdown in production and packaging processes.
The recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
What consumers should do right now
If you have the affected product:
- Do not consume it.
- Keep the pouch (and take a photo of the UPC and Best if used by date if helpful).
- Contact Second Nature Brands for a full refund.
Contact information for refunds and questions
Second Nature Brands says consumers can reach them by phone or email:
- Phone: +1.800.651.7263
- Monday–Friday: 8:00 AM–8:00 PM ET
- Saturday–Sunday: 9:00 AM–5:00 PM ET
- Email: recall@secondnaturebrandsus.com
Health & fitness note: “Keto” doesn’t equal “risk-free”
Keto-friendly snacks can be convenient for people managing carbs, training schedules, or busy workdays—but this alert is a reminder that label accuracy is non-negotiable, especially for anyone balancing nutrition goals with medical dietary restrictions.
If you or someone in your household has a tree nut or cherry allergy, consider doing a quick sweep of:
- Snack drawers at home and work
- Gym bags and travel kits
- Recent bulk orders or subscription deliveries
Bottom line
If you have a 10-ounce pouch of SECOND NATURE KETO CRUNCH SMART MIX™ with UPC 077034013405 and Best if used by 2/12/2027, do not eat it. Contact Second Nature Brands for a refund and share the alert with anyone who may have purchased the product—especially those with tree nut or cherry allergies.
Source
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Health
Join the Fight Against ALS: Register and Make a Difference
Every year, doctors tell more than 5,000 Americans they have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS. It is a life-changing diagnosis. In honor of ALS Awareness Month, learn more about the disease.
Join the Fight Against ALS: Register and Make a Difference
(Feature Impact) Every year, doctors tell more than 5,000 Americans they have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS. It is a life-changing diagnosis.
Still, it’s hard to estimate the total number of ALS cases in the United States. No one knows what causes most cases of ALS, something the U.S. National ALS Registry is working to change.
In honor of ALS Awareness Month, learn more about the registry, how the information is used and how to enroll if you have ALS.
What is ALS?
ALS is a disease that affects the nerve cells that make muscles work in the body. This disease makes the nerve cells stop working and die. The nerves lose the ability to trigger specific muscles, which causes the muscles to become weak and leads to paralysis.
What is the registry?
“The National ALS Registry is a program of, by and for those living with ALS,” said Dr. Paul Mehta, principal investigator of the Registry. “The program collects, manages and analyzes data about people with ALS in the United States. It includes data and information provided by individuals who choose to register and complete the risk factor surveys.”
What is its purpose?
The main purpose is to gather information that can be used in the fight against ALS. The information is used to:
- Estimate the number of new cases of ALS diagnosed each year
- Estimate the number of people who have ALS at any given point in time
- Better understand who gets ALS and what factors affect the disease
- Enhance research that could improve care for people with ALS
How do researchers use the data?
Researchers can use the data to look for disease pattern changes over time and try to identify whether there are common risk factors among people with ALS. Since 2010, the registry has funded more than a dozen studies exploring potential ALS risk factors.
What does participation look like?
Individuals with ALS are encouraged to share their stories, enhancing ALS data and supporting research efforts. People living with ALS can help the National ALS Registry by completing up to 18 risk factor surveys, covering topics such as occupational history and environmental exposures, which help create a more complete picture of their ALS story.
How can someone join?
Anyone living with ALS can enroll. By joining and taking the risk factor surveys, individuals living with ALS can help future generations.
Get started at cdc.gov/als.
SOURCE:
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Lifestyle
Reclassification of marijuana opens doors for much‑needed medical research into the benefits and risks of the drug
The DOJ’s move to reclassify medical marijuana as Schedule III could unlock long-blocked cannabis research—while raising new questions about safety, regulation, and risk.
Carey S. Cadieux, Binghamton University, State University of New York
When the U.S. Department of Justice moved to reclassify medical marijuana to a Schedule III drug on April 23, 2026, it set the stage for a vast amount of medical research that has been hobbled for decades by its more restrictive Schedule I classification.
The Justice Department also called for an expedited federal rescheduling process, with proceedings expected to begin in late June 2026, but for now cannabis at the federal level remains a Schedule I drug.
I’m an associate professor of nursing and I edited a textbook for nurses about providing care with cannabis. Cannabis is the umbrella term for the plant genus that includes both marijuana and hemp – two varieties of the same plant distinguished primarily by their content of THC, one of the active components of cannabis.
Moving cannabis to a Schedule III drug ushers in the end of the cannabis prohibition era and the beginning of the regulation era, potentially creating promising opportunities around research and new therapeutics.
How are drugs regulated by ‘schedule’?
The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 categorizes all substances regulated under existing federal law into one of five schedules. The act regulates the manufacturing, importation, possession, use and distribution of substances on each schedule.
Several factors determine schedule placement, including the drug’s medical use, scientific evidence of its benefits and pharmacological effects, patterns and history of abuse, public health risk level, degree of physical or psychological addiction potential, and whether the drug can be used to make another controlled substance.
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s rescheduling of marijuana will move it from its current classification as a Schedule I drug, defined as having a high risk for abuse and no accepted medical use, to a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act. While still tightly regulated, Schedule III drugs are considered to have moderate to low risk for physical and psychological dependence and to have some medical benefits.
Other Schedule I drugs include heroin, psilocybin, LSD, peyote and MDMA, or ecstasy. These drugs cannot be dispensed or prescribed, with some exceptions. Current Schedule III drugs include ketamine, anabolic steroids, testosterone, products with less than 90 milligrams of codeine per dosage unit and some cannabinoids.
The move to reclassify medical marijuana products as Schedule III drugs applies only to those products certified by state-level medical cannabis programs. All other cannabis products remain a federal Schedule I drug, including those available from states’ recreational cannabis programs.
Impacts of cannabis reclassification
This legal order acknowledges that medical marijuana has some medical value and asserts that it has a lower potential for abuse than under the previous Schedule I classification.
The reclassification also ensures that state-registered medical cannabis patients continue to be permitted to purchase medical cannabis products without changes to their current certification or recommendation.
One of the challenges with this new law is that states have not standardized medical cannabis regulations, and each state will have its own quality and testing standards. In Maine, for instance, medical cannabis is not tested for molds, fungus, heavy metals or pesticides, while recreational cannabis is.
This means that the Schedule III medical cannabis in Maine could be contaminated, while the state’s testing of recreational cannabis makes it much safer to consume.
What are the implications for marijuana research?
For decades, researchers have struggled to conduct high-quality research studies due to their lack of access to the cannabis products that patients actually use and restrictions on their processes.
With the reclassification, researchers who are registered with the DEA to research cannabis will be able to obtain cannabis flower and plant material, as well as manufactured cannabis products, such as tinctures and edibles, directly from state-licensed businesses that are DEA-registered.
This means researchers will no longer need to rely on the federal DEA registry for access to cannabis products for research, which were often inferior in quality and variety in comparison to the everyday products medical cannabis patients typically have access to. Instead, they will be able to study cannabis products that patients use in daily life, such as vapes and various edible products.
This shift in access will now allow researchers to undertake the gold standard of research approaches: the randomized controlled trial.
Randomized controlled trials will help researchers like my colleagues determine how effective cannabis is in treating people with complex medical needs. This includes patients who experience nausea and pain while undergoing cancer treatments, multiple sclerosis patients with severe muscle spasm and stiffness, and chronic pain patients who strive to find relief without using opioids.
Might rescheduling send mixed signals?
Rescheduling may lead people to believe that cannabis is safe for all people to consume.
However, a growing body of research points to possible adverse effects from cannabis use, particularly in vulnerable groups, such as people who are pregnant, adolescents, people with preexisting mental health conditions such as schizophrenia or psychosis, and those with cardiac issues.
Cannabis can also lead to adverse drug interactions. Therefore, medical patients should use it with discretion and under the guidance of a healthcare professional.
For most medical cannabis patients, THC doses should start low and gradually be increased.
Rescheduling will be a big step toward helping researchers build a greatly needed solid body of evidence around both the benefits and potential harms of cannabis. But rescheduling should not be interpreted as a signal that cannabis is harmless.
Carey S. Cadieux, Associate Professor of Nursing, Binghamton University, State University of New York
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Our Lifestyle section on STM Daily News is a hub of inspiration and practical information, offering a range of articles that touch on various aspects of daily life. From tips on family finances to guides for maintaining health and wellness, we strive to empower our readers with knowledge and resources to enhance their lifestyles. Whether you’re seeking outdoor activity ideas, fashion trends, or travel recommendations, our lifestyle section has got you covered. Visit us today at https://stmdailynews.com/category/lifestyle/ and embark on a journey of discovery and self-improvement.
