Food and Drug Unit

 The Food and Drug Unit of the Office of Public Health regulates a variety of activities and processes pertaining to food, drugs, and cosmetics in the state of Louisiana. Regulated facilities include food-manufacturing facilities; drug-manufacturing facilities; food and drug storage warehouses; ice-manufacturing plants; ice-vending units; bottled water facilities; acidified- and low-acid canned foods processors; food banks; breweries; wineries; wholesale producers of value-added seafood products (such as gumbos and etouffees); beef and poultry product storage warehouses; medical-gas manufacturers and trans-fillers; medical-gas distribution facilities; UV tanning facilities; commercial body art (tattooing, permanent makeup, and body piercing) facilities; and water-vending units.

Please note that for assistance with retail operations like restaurants and grocery stores, you must contact your local parish health unit sanitarian.

Looking for more information? Select a topic below: 

• Food
• Drugs
• Cosmetics
• Product Registration
• Commercial Body Art
• UV Tanning
• Export Certificates
• Find Your Inspector
• Other Useful Links
• Links for Employees

 or choose one of our HOT topics:

• Food Processing/Recall Plans
• LACF/Acidified Foods Training Courses (link requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) 
• Current Food/Drug/Cosmetic Product Recalls

Special Note About Alcohol Product Registrations

Fast Facts

• Food and Drug Unit inspectors conducted over 2,446 inspections of food, drug, cosmetic, UV tanning, and commercial body art facilities in FY 2017.
• FDU inspectors conduct inspections on behalf of the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as part of the Federal Inspection Program (FIP) contract.
• Staff members issue thousands of export certificates and certificates of free sale annually.