Which agency did the federal government establish to protect consumers safety?

Although Congress began investigating drug purity in the 1840s, it was during the Progressive Era that it approved the first federal regulations protecting consumers’ health and safety. When Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel The Jungle revealed food adulteration and unsanitary practices in meat production, public outrage prompted Congress to establish federal responsibility for public health and welfare. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 prohibited the sale of misbranded or adulterated food and drugs in interstate commerce and laid a foundation for the nation’s first consumer protection agency, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

I have here . . . a number of adulterated articles. Here is a bottle of cherries, originally picked green, in order that they might be firm, with the green color all taken out with acid until they were perfectly white, and then colored with an aniline dye which is poisonous in any quantity.

Representative James Mann of Illinois, Speech to the U.S. House of Representatives, June 21, 1906

“Look before you eat . . . ,” chromolithograph by Frederick Burr Opper, Puck, March 12, 1884

“Look before you eat . . . ,” chromolithograph by Frederick Burr Opper, Puck, March 12, 1884

Letter from Franklin MacVeagh & Co. to Representative James R. Mann, March 29, 1900

Letter from Franklin MacVeagh & Co. to Representative James R. Mann, March 29, 1900

S. 88, A Bill for preventing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of . . . deleterious foods, drugs, medicines, and liquors . . . , December 14, 1905

S. 88, A Bill for preventing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of . . . deleterious foods, drugs, medicines, and liquors . . . , December 14, 1905

U.S. Marshal destroying worm-infested currants and raisins seized in Washington, D.C., bakeries, photograph, November 20, 1909

The Food and Drug Administration is the oldest comprehensive consumer protection agency in the U. S. federal government. Since 1848 the federal government has used chemical analysis to monitor the safety of agricultural products -- a responsibility inherited by the Department of Agriculture in 1862 and later by the FDA. 

Although it was not known by its present name until 1930, FDA’s modern regulatory functions began with the passage of the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act, a law a quarter-century in the making that prohibited interstate commerce in adulterated and misbranded food and drugs.  Harvey Washington Wiley, Chief Chemist of the USDA Bureau of Chemistry, had been the driving force behind this law and headed its enforcement in the early years, providing basic elements of protection that consumers had never known before that time. 

Since then, the FDA has changed along with social, economic, political and legal changes in the United States. Examining the history of these changes illuminates the evolving role that FDA has played in promoting public health and offers lessons to consider as we evaluate current regulatory challenges.

We aim to make consumer financial markets work for consumers, responsible providers, and the economy as a whole. We protect consumers from unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices and take action against companies that break the law. We arm people with the information, steps, and tools that they need to make smart financial decisions.

In a market that works, the prices, risks, and terms of the deal are clear upfront so that consumers can understand their options and comparison shop. Companies all play by the same consumer protection rules and compete fairly on providing quality and service. To achieve this vision, the CFPB works to:

We create tools, answer common questions, and provide tips that help consumers navigate their financial choices and shop for the deal that works best for them.

We take action against predatory companies and practices that violate the law and have already returned billions of dollars to harmed consumers.

We encourage financial education and capability from childhood through retirement, publish research, and educate financial companies about their responsibilities.

Our core functions

The CFPB was created to provide a single point of accountability for enforcing federal consumer financial laws and protecting consumers in the financial marketplace. Before, that responsibility was divided among several agencies. Today, it’s our primary focus.

Which federal agency is responsible for protecting consumers?

What is the FTC responsible for?

What is FTC stand for?

What was before the FTC?