FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)
Example: A spinach supplier issues an FDA recall mid-service. You pull every affected case from the walk-in, log it, and 86 the dishes that use it — exactly the FDA's job. What you do NOT do is open the Cost Index to learn the recall "raised the price of spinach." The Cost Index never sourced a spinach price from the FDA; that wholesale number comes from USDA, corroborated by BLS. Safety came from the FDA; cost came from somewhere else entirely.
the U.S. food-safety & labeling regulator
The federal agency that regulates food safety: recalls, labeling rules, facility inspections, additive approvals, and the prevention rules under FSMA. It decides whether food is safe to sell and labeled correctly — not what it costs. The Cost Index draws zero prices from it; it’s a safety regulator, not a price source.
Why it matters
An operator should absolutely watch the FDA — a recall can empty your walk-in overnight. Just not for pricing: the FDA publishes whether food is safe and labeled right, never what an ingredient sells for. The wholesale level comes from USDA, corroborated by BLS. Safety and cost are two different questions.
Frequently asked
Does the Cost Index use FDA data?
No. The Cost Index draws zero prices from the FDA, because the FDA does not publish what ingredients cost — it regulates whether food is safe and labeled correctly. Wholesale price levels come from USDA, corroborated by BLS; the FDA isn't a price source at all.
What does the FDA actually do for a restaurant?
It sets and enforces food-safety rules: it issues recalls, writes labeling requirements, inspects food facilities, approves additives, and administers the prevention rules under FSMA (the Food Safety Modernization Act). It decides whether food is safe to sell and labeled honestly — not what that food costs.
If the FDA doesn't price anything, why should an operator care about it?
Because safety events hit your inventory and your menu directly. A recall can empty your walk-in overnight, and a labeling rule can change what you're allowed to print on a package or takeout box. You watch the FDA for what's safe and sellable — just never for what an ingredient costs.
- BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) — the U.S. price, wage & jobs statistics agency
- USDA Market News — USDA’s public market-price reports
- USDA Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) — mandatory packer price reporting to USDA
- USDA Dairy Product Sales Report (NDPSR) — the weekly U.S. dairy price benchmark
- FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) — the public front door to U.S. economic data
- EIA (U.S. Energy Information Administration) — the U.S. federal energy-statistics agency
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171 terms.
Plain-English definitions for every term in your audit, organized by category.