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FDA Works to Strengthen Food Safety Protections as Consumers Increasingly Order Foods Online

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic there were reports that consumers were ordering foods online in record numbers. This wasn’t surprising as restaurants closed in-store seating and communities imposed social distancing and masking requirements to help keep people safe.

However, it is now clear that this is not a trend that will be completely reversed in time but one likely to lead to a new normal in how consumers shop for food, whether it’s from restaurants, grocery stores, or companies providing meal kits and other products. Thus, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is actively working with partners in federal, state, and local government and industry in the U.S. and other nations, as well as with consumer advocates, to help ensure that consumers aren’t ever unwittingly trading food safety for convenience.

The FDA recently held a virtual three-day summit entitled “FDA New Era of Smarter Food Safety Summit on E-Commerce: Ensuring the Safety of Foods Ordered Online and Delivered Directly to Consumers.” We are now considering all that we’ve learned, and continue to take in, in shaping a path forward.