Lawler Strengthens Food Supply Oversight Of Imported Foods To Protect America’s Supply

Washington, D.C. – 7/16/26… Today, Congressman Lawler (NY-17) introduced the Protecting America’s Food Supply Act , legislation to improve oversight of imported food products by ensuring the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) foreign food inspection program is effectively protecting public health. Specifically, this legislation directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct a comprehensive assessment of imported food products to evaluate public health risks, including safety violations, recalls, import volumes, and coordination between the U.S. and foreign regulators. “The safety of our nation’s food supply should never be taken for granted. As more food products are imported into the United States, we must ensure our oversight keeps pace to make sure that Americans have confidence in the food that they are feeding their families. This legislation will not only increase transparency and accountability, but it will help ensure our food system is addressing potential risks before they impact public health,” said Congressman Lawler. The legislation also requires HHS to publicly report key information on imported food safety, including FDA inspection targets, the number of inspections completed, inspection trends by commodity and country of origin, and whether the FDA’s foreign food inspection program is meeting the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act and risk-based inspection standards. The full text of the bill can be found HERE. Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress and represents New York's 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties. He was rated the most effective freshman lawmaker in the 118th Congress, 8th overall, surpassing dozens of committee chairs. ###