FDA deploys AI to handle food safety reviews as inspectors shrink

The FDA just handed its reviewers a new tool: agentic AI, a more autonomous version of artificial intelligence that can make decisions and execute tasks with minimal human oversight. The agency announced the rollout Monday, positioning it as a way to help its staff handle the complex work of safety reviews, inspections, and compliance across the food and drug supply.

This matters because the FDA's Human Foods Program has lost 20 percent of its staff since January. Inspections of foreign food facilities that supply America have hit historic lows. In that context, an AI system that can work faster and handle routine tasks looks less like a luxury and more like a necessity.

What agentic AI actually does

The FDA already deployed a simpler AI tool called Elsa in May—a large language model that answers questions and generates reports. Over 70 percent of FDA staff now use it. But agentic AI operates differently. Instead of waiting for a human to ask it a question and then act on the answer, agentic AI can identify problems, decide what to do about them, and execute those decisions without constant human direction.

The agency's Chief AI Officer, Jeremy Walsh, framed it as a way to "streamline their work and help them ensure the safety and efficacy of regulated products." When asked specifically how this would apply to food safety, an FDA spokesperson emphasized that "any regulatory decisions will be made by agency experts familiar with both the state of the science and regulatory standards." The message was clear: AI handles the grunt work; humans make the calls.

That distinction matters. Food safety reviews and facility inspections involve judgment calls about risk. An AI system that flags a problem is useful. An AI system that decides whether a food additive is safe without human review would be something else entirely.

The staffing crunch behind the announcement

The timing reveals why the FDA is moving quickly. ProPublica reported that the Trump administration's push to shrink government agencies has hit the food program hard. While the drug side of the FDA has experienced more visible turbulence, the food side is quietly understaffed and overextended. Inspections of foreign facilities—critical given how much of America's produce and seafood comes from overseas—have dropped to levels not seen in years.

Adding agentic AI to the mix is one way to handle more work with fewer people. Whether it's enough is an open question.

Meanwhile, the FDA is also processing a new rule that could reshape how food additives are approved. The change would increase transparency around the GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) designation process and give the agency more oversight power. The rule went to the Office of Management and Budget this week and should head to public comment soon.

What happens next depends partly on whether AI can genuinely absorb the workload that departing inspectors left behind—and partly on whether the agency gets the resources it needs. For now, the FDA is betting on both.