AFFI seeks to protect consumers and food makers from increasing food costs in 2017.

As the fiscal year (FY) 2017 budget is constructed, food groups fear that funds required to support the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDAs) food safety programs will add burdensome new costs to consumers and food makers.

With this concern in mind, the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) and a coalition of more than 60 food groups urged the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives to develop a FY 2017 budget that adequately funds FDA food safety programs without saddling consumers and food makers with burdensome new taxes or fees.

“Food safety is the highest priority for America’s food and beverage makers,” said AFFI President and CEO Kraig Naasz.  “As the administration begins to craft the fiscal year 2017 budget, we stand ready to work with federal agencies and Congress to ensure sufficient federal resources are allocated to the FDA’s critical food safety activities without increasing costs for consumers and food makers.”

AFFI and its allies wrote the Department of Health and Human Services secretary, Sylvia Mathews Burwell, and office of management and budget director, Shaun Donovan, stressing that Congress has previously rejected efforts to impose new regulatory fees on food and beverage makers and distributors to fund the FDA’s food safety programs.

The AFFI-led coalition cautioned that imposing any new food taxes will yield crippling economic effects.  The coalition wrote, “As consumers continue to cope with a period of prolonged economic recovery and food makers and retailers struggle with fluctuating commodity prices, the creation of new food taxes or regulatory fees would mean higher costs for food makers and lead to higher retail food prices for the most vulnerable consumers.”