Food Safety Div history

In 1883, Harvey W. Wiley, M.D., was appointed chief chemist at USDA. Wiley devoted his career to raising public awareness of problems with adulterated food; developing standards for food processing; and campaigning for the Pure Food and Drugs Act, also known as the "Wiley Act."

In May 1884, President Chester Arthur signed an act establishing the USDA Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), charged with preventing diseased animals from being used as food.

In 1910, the BAI's Meat Inspection Division established a research center in Beltsville, Md.

In 1931, it was renamed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In 1953, the Eisenhower Administration inaugurated sweeping organizational changes at USDA. Scientific bureaus, including the Bureau of Animal Industry and the Bureau of Dairy Industry, were abolished and their functions were transferred to the newly established Agricultural Research Service (ARS).

In 1965, ARS' Consumer and Marketing Service was reorganized to include the Meat Inspection Division and Poultry Division, merging federal meat and poultry inspection into one program.

In 1999, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) warned that our “fragmented system was not developed under any rational plan but was patched together over many years to address specific health threats from particular food products.”