Food and Beverage News and Trends - July 17, 2026

Welcome to Food and Beverage News and Trends. This regular publication by DLA Piper lawyers focuses on helping clients navigate the ever-changing business, legal, and regulatory landscape.

OIRA publishes 2026 Unified Agenda. The White House Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) has published the 2026 Regulatory Plan and the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions across all federal agencies. The new Unified Agenda for 2026 identifies several major policy priorities in the foods sector, including the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) reform, front-of-package nutrition labeling, food standard revocations, nutrient content claims for added sugar, and revisions to the bioengineered food disclosure standard. In total, FDA lists 18 food-related regulations currently under review. Many of the food-related rules planned for publication have been featured in prior unified regulatory agendas, are final actions flowing from previous rulemaking activities, have already been issued, or are under inter-agency review awaiting publication.

FDA releases 2026 Human Foods Program Guidance Agenda. FDA’s Human Foods Program (HFP) has released its updated 2026 guidance agenda, highlighting possible new topics under consideration for completion in 2026. The guidance agenda topics focus on HFP’s three core risk pillars: “Microbiological Food Safety,” “Nutrition,” and “Food Chemical Safety, Dietary Supplements, and Innovation.” New topics include:

• “Labeling Caffeine Content in Foods and Beverages; Draft Guidance for Industry”
  
  
• Questions and Answers Regarding Use of the ‘Healthy’ Claim”
  
  
• “Necessity of the Use of Food Product Categories in Food Facility Registrations and Updates to Food Product Categories: Guidance for Industry”

Guidance documents do not impose legally enforceable requirements, FDA states. Rather, they represent the agency’s current thinking on a specific topic, and the information in them is designed to assist stakeholders. The complete list may be found at Foods Program Guidance Under Development, but FDA may also issue additional guidance that is not on the list. Public comments on the list of human food and cosmetic guidance topics, including suggestions for alternatives or recommendations on the topics FDA is considering, can be submitted to www.regulations.gov using Docket FDA-2022-D-2088.

Rollins announced FIELDS program to expand domestic fertilizer manufacturing. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has announced USD500 million to fund a new program, Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-term Domestic Supply (FIELDS), with the goal of expanding domestic fertilizer production. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) created FIELDS to assist companies and other eligible groups in constructing new fertilizer factories, expanding existing facilities, and improving storage and transportation. Rollins stated that FIELDS will support domestic projects that could bring new supplies to market quickly, expedite projects that already have private-sector funding, and “bring competition back to the American fertilizer industry.”

Egg producers will pay USD3.3 million to settle price-fixing claims. The Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), together with 17 State Attorneys General, has reached a USD3.3 million settlement with three major egg producers over their alleged manipulation of egg prices. The civil lawsuit brought in the US District Court for the Northern District of Iowa in June charged that, between June 2022 and March 2025, the egg producers worked together to artificially inflate egg prices, secretly communicating to coordinate bidding activity and influence the daily egg price quotes published by Urner Barry, a benchmark pricing service widely used in egg supply contracts. The three companies will pay a combined USD3.3 million to the states where the price-fixing allegations occurred: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Wisconsin. As part of the settlement, they will also donate a combined total of 53 million eggs to food banks or related nonprofits. Further, the three companies have agreed to adopt compliance measures to prevent future violations and to fully cooperate in future oversight by the states. The proposed settlement remains subject to approval by a federal judge.

Two new California laws affecting food sector are now in force. Two California laws affecting the food and beverage sector came into effect this month. The first is SB 68, the Allergen Disclosure for Dining Experiences Act, which makes California the first state to require large chain restaurants to disclose the presence of the top nine allergens in foods they serve. SB 68 requires food facilities with 20 or more locations to provide written notification of the major food allergens that the food facility knows or reasonably should know are contained as an ingredient in each menu item, either directly on its menu or in a digital format. Those allergens are milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, wheat, soy, or sesame. The law does not apply to what the law calls “compact, mobile food operations and nonpermanent food facilities” or to prepackaged foods already covered by federal allergen labeling requirements. In-scope establishments must also disclose use of ingredients containing protein derived from a major allergen. If an establishment chooses a digital method of disclosure, such as a QR code, it must also provide customers with an alternative physical option, such as a menu, chart, or grid. The law, originally enacted in October 2025, will be enforced by local health agencies.

Also in effect this month is California AB 660, which bans the use of consumer-facing sell-by dates on food packaging. This law was enacted in October 2024 to tackle consumer confusion over food safety and to minimize food waste. Instead of setting out a sell-by date, manufacturers selling food in California must use particular standardized labels – a “Best if Used By” label indicating when a food is at its peak quality and a “Use By” or “Freeze By” label to indicate when a food item is no longer safe to eat. Of note: Manufacturers may use one of these labels or both. The law also grants manufacturers and retailers a grace period covering foods made before July 1 this year. AB 660 allows sell-by dates to be included on products as long as they are coded for retailers rather than aimed at consumers. California was the first state in the US to standardize food date labels. Last month, New York moved to become the second with the passage of AB A7291B/S 7618, which awaits Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature. Similar legislation has recently been considered in Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and South Carolina. FDA has no specific requirements for date labeling.

FTC prioritizes "Made in the USA" advertising rules: Compliance considerations. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has continued to prioritize enforcement of “Made in the USA” claims, primarily through the FTC Act and the Made in USA (MUSA) Labeling Rule – both of which require that marketing materials accurately reflect the domestic content of goods marketed as being made in the US. Declaring July 2026 “Made in the USA” Month, on July 6 the agency issued warning letters to seven companies that it believes may have misrepresented products as MUSA. The action highlights the FTC’s ongoing work to ensure products claimed to be made in the US are actually supporting American workers, manufacturing, and communities. Our concise alert addresses key concerns for businesses that make MUSA claims about the origin of their goods.

Executive Order supports regenerative agriculture practices. President Donald Trump has issued Executive Order (EO) 14414, “Advancing Regenerative Agriculture and Strengthening American Farm Resilience,” intended to promote research, innovation, and public-private partnerships that support regenerative agriculture – a sustainable farming approach that protects and improves soil health and natural resources while supporting market opportunities for farmers. Among other actions, the EO:

• Directs the Agriculture Secretary, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, and EPA Administrator to “expedite development of a research and evaluation framework for cumulative exposure across chemical classes that are regulated by statute in the food supply.”
  
  
• Directs the EPA Administrator to “prioritize registration actions related to substances that can be used as alternatives to older active ingredients.”
  
  
• Directs HHS, in consultation with the USDA Office of Pest Management Policy and EPA Office of Pesticide Programs, to issue a grand prize challenge “for researchers to identify creative solutions for evaluating the exposure, diagnosis, and treatments of cumulative chemical exposures on individual health.”
  
  
• Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to “maximize the funding of the current Regenerative Pilot Program and evaluate ways to expand the reach of the program.”

In conjunction with the EO, USDA announced a final Regenerative Feedstock Rule, which revises technical guidelines for farmers who use certain authorized practices to quantify, report, and verify the carbon intensity of agricultural commodity crops used in the production of biofuels. Furthermore, HHS released “Regenerative Agriculture and Population Health: Examining How Regenerative Agriculture Can Support Healthier Food Systems and Better Health Outcomes,” an issue brief from the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) stating that “regenerative agriculture is a promising area for continued scientific evaluation that could augment wider federal efforts to improve nutrition, strengthen food systems and address upstream factors linked to chronic disease prevention.”

Arkansas moves forward with a ban on using SNAP for candy, soda despite recent court ruling. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has announced that Arkansas has moved ahead with its plan to ban the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to buy candy and soda, despite a district court ruling that similar restrictions in other states violate federal law. Arkansas is one of 23 states that have received a USDA waiver allowing it to restrict the use of SNAP benefits to purchase such products as sugary drinks, prepared desserts, and candy. As we reported in June, the US District Court for the District of Columbia vacated USDA’s approval of pilot project waivers that allowed new SNAP restrictions in Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia. The court stated that its action was not a reflection on the merits of the waivers but that only Congress – not a federal agency – may legally define what qualifies as “food” under SNAP. Meanwhile, acknowledging the ruling, early this month the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services advised SNAP retailers in that state to update their systems so that SNAP participants may again use their funds to buy foods within the federal guidelines.

Louisiana reports illnesses associated with raw milk consumption. The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) has announced it is investigating a cluster of illnesses linked to consumption of unpasteurized (raw) milk. Since April, state investigators have linked consumption of raw milk to 11 cases of bacterial illnesses – campylobacteriosis and cryptosporidiosis. Two of those patients have been hospitalized. The people who fell ill reported consuming raw milk from three different raw milk dairies in Louisiana, which LDH has not identified. LDH does not regulate the production of raw milk or raw milk products, but, under state law, raw milk may only be sold or distributed for animal or pet consumption. LDH’s investigation is ongoing.

Bipartisan bill introduced to revive regional agricultural programs for small producers. US Senators Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) have introduced SB 4842, the American Food Supply Chain Resiliency Act, aiming to strengthen the resilience of the US food supply chain and expand markets for agricultural producers. SB 4842 would amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to make the USDA Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) Program permanent and create a Regional Food Systems Hubs (RFSH) Program. The stated goal of the legislation is to ensure a more resilient, competitive supply chain by helping to create new markets for local and regional foods and for small and diversified producers. The RFSI, a temporary program created by USDA in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, provided grants to individual states to support projects that build or expand facilities, upgrade equipment, improve food safety compliance, strengthen distribution networks, and enhance energy and water efficiency. The proposed RFSH program would create at least ten regional hubs, covering all US states and territories, plus one dedicated intertribal hub, to help connect local producers to institutional buyers like schools, hospitals, military bases, and grocery distributors. The hubs would also provide coordination with federal resources from USDA, the Small Business Administration, the US Department of Commerce, and the Economic Development Administration. Most recently, the bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry.

Court orders USDA to restore USD127 million in farmland-access grants. The US District Court for the District of Columbia has issued a preliminary injunction ordering USDA to restore USD127 million in land-access grants, ruling the agency likely violated the law when it canceled the awards in March. The preliminary injunction reinstates funding for 24 organizations that sued after USDA terminated grants awarded in 2023 through the Increasing Land, Capital, and Market Access Program. The grants were designed to help beginning and underserved Black, Indigenous, female, and immigrant farmers gain access to new markets, land, financing, and technical assistance. The court also granted the plaintiffs’ request to join another existing lawsuit, Urban Sustainability Directors Network v. USDA, that was first filed in June 2025. The ruling does not permanently resolve the case; rather, it restores the grants while litigation continues. Discovery in the underlying case, including further USDA document production, continues through September.

New World Screwworm update.

• At this writing, the number of confirmed cases of New World Screwworm (NWS) in US animals has reached 34. The University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) reports that 20 of those cases are active, meaning those animals are still undergoing treatment and wound management.
  
  
• The Texas Animal Health Commission has put in place emergency restrictions on the movement of all warm-blooded animals in infested zones in 21 Texas counties.
  
  
• On July 2, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller asked FDA to issue an emergency use authorization that would allow the use of feed-based ivermectin for cattle and other livestock to help combat infestations of NWS. In February, FDA approved the use of an ivermectin injectable solution for certain cattle.