Sen. Chuck Schumer Blasts FDA’s ‘Ridiculous’ New Proposal for Breweries

Sen. Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.) is
sticking up for breweries and pushing back against the Food and
Drug Administration’s nonsensical “spent grain” proposal. In a
letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, Schumer said the
proposed rule “would drive up costs for both farmers and brewers
with no clear health or safety benefit.” 

Under the rule,
breweries would be barred from sharing spent grains—the
leftover muck from the beer-making process—unless they dry and
package the grains first. Currently, many brewers donate the spent
grains directly to local farmers, who feed it to livestock. It’s a
symbiotic relationship that saves both parties time and cuts down
on environmental waste.

Nick Matt, CEO of the brewery behind Saranac beers, says his
company has been providing spent grain to
farmers since 1888. It seems that for the past
century and change, pigs and cows have been perfectly fine without
the FDA imposing safety standards on the spent grains they
eat. 

At a press conference at New York’s Saranac Brewery yesterday,
Schumer said
the “ridiculous” rule—part of the FDA’s implementation of the new
Food Safety Modernization Act—is overly restrictive, is
unnecessary, and would force brewers to trash the grains, as
this would be cheaper than meeting the new requirements. The
brewing industry estimates that compliance could cost brewers over
$50 million a year.

The rule “simply cannot go forward,” said Schumer. “I’m urging
the FDA to do an about-face on this misguided rule, which would
stymie a mutually-beneficial relationship between two of Upstate
New York’s most important industries.”

Last week, 13 U.S. representatives
also sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Hamburg about the spent
grain proposal. “While we appreciate that the FDA is working
towards improved food safety,” wrote the lawmakers, led by Reps.
John Garamendi (D-Calif.) and Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.), “the
unintended consequences of these regulations will increase costs,
decrease efficiency and hamper the growth of breweries.”