Following Ernst Advocacy, USDA Reduces Regulatory Burden, Provides Certainty for Pork Processors

WASHINGTON – After years of continued pressure from U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it would maintain increased line speeds and reduce duplicative regulatory burdens on American pork and poultry processors.

Under the new rulemaking, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will extend waivers allowing pork and poultry facilities to operate under higher line speeds, ensuring they can meet demand without unnecessary bureaucracy.

“After years of working to cut the red tape and reduce regulatory burdens on our pork processors, I’m thrilled President Trump and Secretary Rollins have taken quick action on this issue,” said Senator Ernst. “By integrating proven results from research into policy, we can increase processing capacity, expand options when selling hogs, decrease transportation costs, increase certainty for producers, and more. Iowa is proud to lead the nation in pork production, and now our producers can go the ‘whole hog’ without the burden of excessive government oversight.”

Background:

Senator Ernst has long been at the forefront of discussions to protect Iowa’s pork producers and ensure they can remain competitive. In 2021, she spoke up in defense of producers after an unfair court decision to vacate a portion of the New Swine Inspection System (NSIS) line speeds. Then in February 2023, Ernst took action again to secure an additional nine months for the NSIS trial. In November 2023, she once again renewed her call for an extension to maintain critical pork processing capacity.

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