H.R. 2472

INFANTS Act of 2025

Official summary

Written by the Congressional Research Service.

Improving Newborns’ Food and Nutrition Testing Safety Act of 2025 or the INFANTS Act of 2025

This bill requires infant and toddler food to be tested periodically for contaminants and imposes other safety requirements on food and formula manufacturers.

Specifically, the bill requires facilities that manufacture or process infant and toddler food in final form to conduct quarterly tests for contaminants, including lead and arsenic. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may subject other foods to this requirement as appropriate. If a facility that is subject to these requirements fails to comply, food manufactured or processed there is deemed adulterated and may not be introduced into interstate commerce.

The bill also specifies that if the FDA determines an infant and toddler food, other than infant formula, contains a contaminant that renders the food adulterated, the FDA must provide the responsible party with an opportunity to initiate a voluntary recall. (Under current law, if a responsible party does not voluntarily recall an adulterated product, the FDA may impose a mandatory recall.)

Further, if testing of an infant formula reveals the presence of certain pathogens, including Listeria monocytogenes or Salmonella, the manufacturer must (1) notify the FDA within 24 hours, (2) properly dispose of the product, and (3) provide the FDA with test results and isolates from the formula.

Finally, the bill requires manufacturers of powdered infant formula to monitor the effectiveness of sanitation and hygiene controls where the formula has the potential to be exposed to Cronobacter spp. or Salmonella.

Text of the bill

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Sec. 7. Report final product positive test results for relevant pathogens in infant formula

Section 412 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350a) is amended—

(1) in subsection (e)—

(A) in paragraph (1)—

(i) in the first sentence, by striking promptly and inserting , within 24 hours of acquiring such knowledge,; and

(ii) in the second sentence, by striking the infant formula and inserting an infant formula;

(B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (4);

(C) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by striking paragraph (1) and inserting paragraphs (1) and (2); and

(D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:

Text this section adds to the law

(2) If the result of any in-process or finished product testing of an infant formula that has been processed by the manufacturer is confirmed as a positive analytical result for any environmental pathogen (as defined in section 117.3 of title 21, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation)), the manufacturer shall—

(A) within 24 hours of acquiring such confirmation, notify the Secretary of such confirmation regardless of whether such infant formula has left an establishment subject to the control of the manufacturer;

(B) consult with the Secretary for proper disposal and properly dispose of the affected product; and

(C) provide to the Secretary results and isolates from a positive sample of such infant formula.

(3) Not later than 90 days after receipt of a notification under paragraph (1) or (2), the Secretary shall confirm through the collection of documentation that the manufacturer submitting the notification performed, or is performing, appropriate corrective action. The manufacturer shall make such documentation available to the Secretary during an inspection and, upon request of the Secretary, electronically or by other means.