Following nearly ten years of regulatory discussions, the Food and Drug Administration declared on February 19th that producers of Grade A cottage cheese will receive an exemption from the agency’s Food Traceability Rule.
The waiver relieves Grade A cottage cheese makers from enhanced tracking requirements that apply to items listed on the Food Traceability List, lessening administrative duties for companies already adhering to stringent Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance standards overseen by the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments.
The National Milk Producers Federation backed the Food Safety Modernization Act when it passed in 2011 and acknowledges that tracking systems and proper documentation play crucial roles in food safety. Nevertheless, since FSMA became law, NMPF has challenged the FDA’s methodology for identifying “high-risk foods” as outlined in the legislation’s Section 204.
Even with NMPF’s numerous protests, the FDA implemented final regulations in November 2022 classifying all cheese varieties except hard cheeses as high-risk products. The agency’s risk assessment framework under these rules categorizes “pasteurized cheese, other than hard” at the highest risk tier among all marketplace foods — ranking it even above raw milk cheese products. The final regulations initially established January 20, 2026, as the deadline for manufacturers to comply, but advocacy efforts by NMPF and other industry groups convinced the FDA to postpone the compliance deadline by 30 months until July 20, 2028. This delay provides additional time for NMPF to advocate for modifications. The Grade A cottage cheese exemption announced this month represents one victory that NMPF, working alongside the International Dairy Foods Association, vigorously pursued. Cottage cheese appeared on the original Food Traceability List because it belongs to the “Cheese (made from pasteurized milk), fresh soft or soft unripened” classification.
The FDA eventually accepted NMPF’s argument presented in September 2024 submissions that existing PMO supervision and its inherent protective measures eliminate the need for additional traceability procedures. This practical decision decreases regulatory burden while maintaining robust food safety measures.
