The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Thursday that it is extending the compliance deadline for its far-reaching FSMA 204 Food Traceability Rule by 30 months. The rule was originally set to take effect in January—that deadline has now been delayed until July 20, 2028.
The rule covers industries across the food supply chain, requiring companies that manufacture, process, pack, or hold food to maintain records that enable them to track foods back to the source.
The goal is to better account for contaminated food products that could pose a danger to consumers.
The FDA said in a statement that it “remains committed to successful implementation of the full requirements of the final rule, as they will allow for faster identification and removal of potentially contaminated food from the market, resulting in fewer foodborne illnesses and deaths.”
The extension does not amend the final rule, according to the FDA, but aims to give businesses more time “to ensure complete coordination across the supply chain.”
Businesses that are positioned to achieve compliance by the original target date, as well as those which aren’t, have expressed concern about the timeline because, in some cases, their business partners might not achieve compliance, according to the FDA.
This could create a domino effect of businesses that are in compliance still being unable to track the source of some food products.
The National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) has raised concerns about the rule’s requirements, it said. NACS said it will continue to advocate for major changes to, or withdrawal of, the rule. But, while the extension offers some welcome relief, NACS cautions that retailers should not interpret the delay as a reason to postpone preparing for the final rule.
For retailers, the extended timeline offers more breathing room to prepare, but the rule’s stringent requirements remain. “The delay is helpful, but it’s not a reprieve,” said Margaret Mannion, NACS director of government relations. “Convenience retailers need to still be thinking about how they might build or update their systems to comply with the final rule that requires them to track information they may have never had to capture before.”
FMI–The Food Industry Association and the National Grocers Association (NGA) applauded the decision.
“While additional time is critical for efficient implementation across all sectors, we also strongly believe FDA should reexamine certain aspects of the rule to provide flexibility for the industry to improve traceability without unnecessarily burdening the supply chain and increasing food costs to consumers,” FMI President and CEO Leslie Sarasin said in a statement. “Today’s extension is critical to allow the industry to meet the regulation’s intent while ensuring FDA is able to receive and utilize the data it needs to improve food safety more efficiently with the least impact on consumer prices.”
The NGA said in a statement that the rule would disproportionately impact smaller grocers, adding that the original timeline was “nearly impossible to meet across the vast dynamic food system.”
“It quickly added exorbitant costs and operational complexity, threatening grocers’ ability to serve their communities effectively. The FDA’s decision to delay compliance provides much-needed relief for independent grocers, who would have been forced to pass these burdensome costs on to consumers,” said NGA Group Vice President, Government Relations, Stephanie Johnson.
The grocery industry has been readying itself for the rule. Supermarket News recently discussed the rule with grocery tech company Upshop, which recently partnered with food traceability network ReposiTrak to update supply chain reporting.
“The extension is not permission to delay an approach, it’s an opportunity to institute solutions which level up traceability and guarantee food safety to shoppers,” said Upshop Chief Marketing Officer Mike Weber. “Upshop’s store operations platform, offering modern solutions such as DSD receiving, is well positioned to drive savings to store operators and support rising compliance demands.”
A version of this story appeared in Supermarket News.
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