OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Neighborhood reporter John Brown talked with parents and health experts about this news.
Reuters reports the Food and Drug Administration has paused its proficiency testing program for milk, due in part to workforce cuts to the FDA.
One local public health official said she's not concerned right now, but in the long run, that could be a different story.
Bethany Jensen said her kids drink milk almost daily.
"I'm concerned that there's going to be a period of time that we don't know what's going to be in our milk," said Jensen.
According to the FDA, the proficiency testing ensures routine in-state labs accurately measures quality standards.
A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson told me that the lab where the testing took place was already set to be decommissioned before the staff cuts were announced.
"I think there's a certain matter of trust whenever you're buying something from a store. You don't know how it got there," she said.
Dr. Maureen Tierney with Creighton University said she doesn't see any short-term impacts to milk safety, but is concerned about long-term impacts such as contamination and diseases like E. Coli, Listeria, and Salmonella.
"It concerned me in the sense that we want to have the safest food supply that we can have," said Tierney.
Tierney said it's hard to predict what could happen because there are a lot of unknowns in this situation.
"I think it's going to be very important to keep an eye on this over the next few weeks," she said.
KMTV reached out to the Nebraska Department of Agriculture who told me that state testing will continue like normal.
"I don't think I would change any of my habits right now, but I would keep an ear out in case anything is reported," said Jensen.
HHS tells us there is currently an active transition of proficiency testing to a new FDA lab, but it's unsure when that will be completed.
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