Welcome New OTA Committee Vice-Chair Jennifer Weekes

ODA Director Nominated to USDA Post

Alexis Taylor, Director of Oregon Department of Agriculture has been nominated by President Biden to the position of USDA Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs. Taylor has served as ODA’s director since 2016. Prior to her position at ODA, she oversaw USDA’s Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services. Taylor grew up on her family farm in Iowa, graduated from Iowa State University, and served in the U.S. Army Reserves and was deployed to Iraq. For more information.

Casey Sixkiller appointed EPA Region 10 Administrator

President Biden will appoint Casey Sixkiller the administrator for EPA Region 10, which covers Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Sixkiller has served as the Deputy Mayor of Seattle and the Chief Operating Officer of King County, the largest county in Washington. He launched the Cherokee Nation’s Washington D.C. office and served as their lead advocate before Congress and the federal agencies. He began his public career first working for U.S. Rep Jim McDermott (D-WA) and then for U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). Sixkiller is a graduate of Seattle Public Schools and Dartmouth College. And, yes, he is the son of famed University of Washington quarterback Sonny Sixkiller.

Allergens - FDA Guidance Beyond the Big 9

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a draft guidance (4/18/2022) describing the approach it intends to take in evaluating food allergens that are not one of the nine major food allergens (milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, sesame and soybeans--FDA will be adding sesame to this list effective January 1, 2023). FDA’s guidance focuses on immunoglobulin E antibody (IgE)-mediated food allergies, which are known to cause the most severe and life-threatening reactions.

The draft, “Evaluating the Public Health Importance of Food Allergens Other Than the Major Food Allergens Listed in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act”, reviews the evidence that establishes a food as a cause of IgE-mediated food allergy and scientific factors, such as prevalence, severity, and allergenic potency, that the FDA would consider in evaluations. It also reviews the agency’s recommendations for identifying and evidence to determine the public health importance of a non-listed food allergen.