Petition pushes FDA to ban ractopamine in feed production amid global concerns

USA – A coalition of advocacy groups is urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reconsider its approval of ractopamine, a controversial feed additive used in swine and cattle, citing risks to human health, animal welfare, and environmental safety.

The formal petition, submitted by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Center for Biological Diversity, Center for Food Safety, and Food Animal Concerns Trust, calls on the FDA to reduce or eliminate the use of ractopamine in livestock feed. 

The move has gained momentum with more than 50 additional organisations, led by Friends of the Earth, sending a letter to FDA Commissioner Martin Makary, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Center for Veterinary Medicine Acting Director Timothy Schell in support of a nationwide ban.

“We’re calling on President Trump and Secretary Kennedy to Make America Healthy Again by taking this extraordinarily risky drug out of our food,” said Hannah Connor, environmental health deputy director at the Center for Biological Diversity. 

“It’s outrageous that Democratic and Republican administrations alike have been too timid to take on powerful agribusiness interests to protect Americans’ health, but we hope this administration finds the courage to put a stop to this dangerous drug use.”

Ractopamine, a synthetic beta-adrenergic agonist, is commonly used to enhance muscle growth, improve feed efficiency, and increase lean meat yield in livestock. 

In swine, it can result in an additional 3 kg (6.6 lb) of lean pork per animal and up to 10% greater feed efficiency. It is also popular among show animal producers for its ability to increase muscle mass.

Currently approved in 26 countries, including the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, ractopamine remains legal for use with no withdrawal period before slaughter. The FDA maintains that it is safe and effective when used according to label directions.

Yet, critics argue that the agency has overlooked important health and safety concerns. Over 160 countries, including the European Union, China, and Russia, have banned ractopamine due to concerns over its potential effects on human health, such as increased heart rate and anxiety, commonly associated with beta-agonists.

Beyond human health, petitioners point to evidence that pigs fed ractopamine may suffer from stress-related conditions, gait abnormalities, reduced bone mass, and even death. Despite acknowledging these animal welfare risks, the FDA has not classified ractopamine as unsafe.

The petition also argues that the FDA has not fully considered environmental implications, including the possibility of antibiotic-resistant pathogens spreading to humans or contaminating groundwater through animal waste.

Taiwan detects ractopamine in pork imports, declines stricter checks

Meanwhile, ractopamine has resurfaced as a topic of international scrutiny. In Taiwan, the Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) recently detected trace amounts of the additive in imported pork from Australia. 

Two shipments, totalling over 47 metric tons, tested at 0.002 and 0.003 parts per million (ppm) of ractopamine, well below Taiwan’s legal limit of 0.01 ppm for pork meat.

These findings follow Taiwan’s decision to lift its ban on ractopamine in imported pork in January 2021. 

Despite this being the first detection of the additive in Australian pork since then, the TFDA announced that it would not increase random inspections at the border.

“All products that qualify for importation will not harm human health even if they are consumed every day or for a lifetime,” TFDA Director-General Chiang Chih-kang stated at a press conference on May 5.

From January 2021 to April 2025, only one of the 25,466 pork shipments tested in Taiwan was found to contain ractopamine above zero, underscoring the rarity but persistence of the issue.

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