Expanded Food Safety Investigation Act of 2025

The Expanded Food Safety Investigation Act of 2025 would give the Food and Drug Administration new authority to request access to concentrated animal-feeding operations (large-scale livestock facilities) to conduct microbial sampling. The FDA could request this access when investigating foodborne illness outbreaks, determining outbreak causes, or addressing other public health needs. These large animal operations would be required to provide reasonable access for sampling of plants, animals, water, and the environment, with penalties imposed on operations that refuse.

If enacted, data collected through this sampling would be shared with the Department of Agriculture and state and federal public health agencies to help detect, investigate, and prevent foodborne illnesses. For everyday citizens, this could mean faster identification and response to food contamination sources, potentially reducing the spread of foodborne illness outbreaks. The bill is currently in committee and has not yet been voted on by the full Senate.