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US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has suspended a quality control programme for fluid milk and other dairy products, according to Reuters.

The suspension follows the departure of 20,000 employees from the Department of Health and Human Services – which includes the FDA – as part of the Trump administration’s effort to shrink the federal workforce.

It marks the second FDA programme suspension in as many months, impacting initiatives that test for bird flu in dairy products and pathogens in other foods.

The FDA’s proficiency testing programmes ensure consistency and accuracy across the nation’s network of food safety laboratories, which rely on quality tests to meet standards for accreditation.

Effective 22 April, the agency suspended its testing programme for grade A raw milk and finished products, according to an email seen by Reuters, which stated that the FDA’s Moffett Center Proficiency Testing Laboratory, which oversees food safety, "is no longer able to provide laboratory support for proficiency testing and data analysis".

It had been reported earlier that the laboratory had been set to be decommissioned before the cuts and that proficiency testing would be paused during this transition to a new lab, however, dairy product testing was to continue.

The email continued: “The FDA is actively evaluating alternative approaches for the upcoming fiscal year and will keep all participating laboratories informed as new information becomes available.”

The Trump administration has proposed cutting a total of $40 billion from the agency under its DOGE programme.