CFA and a coalition of consumer, public health, and environmental groups have filed comments asking the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to move forward with its efforts to rid the food supply of the antibiotic drug carbadox’s carcinogenic residues. In 2003, researchers discovered that approved usage of carbadox results in unsafe levels of carcinogenic residues in pork. Nevertheless, the pork industry has continued to rely on the drug while its manufacturer, Phibro Animal Health, has responded to FDA inquiries for more data on the drug’s toxicology. During that time, Phibro has failed to address the agency’s concerns, and newer research indicates the danger may exceed previous estimates.

Despite the evidence, FDA has opted not to pull carbadox from the marketplace, even as it initiates proceedings to withdraw its previous approval of the drug’s usage. Recently, the manufacturer Phibro requested a hearing to contest withdrawal of the drug’s approval, a process that could drag out for up to a decade. CFA and its allies are urging FDA to use its authority under the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act to ban substances that pose an “imminent hazard to the health of man.” Alternatively, they are asking FDA to simply deny Phibro’s request for a hearing, as the company has already had over a decade to prove its case.