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The primary function of the FDA, or the Food and Drug Administration, in relation to food is to ensure that food products are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled. This encompasses a wide range of responsibilities, including the monitoring of food production processes, setting safety standards, and conducting inspections of food facilities to ensure compliance with regulations. By focusing on the safety and wholesomeness of food, the FDA aims to protect public health and prevent foodborne illnesses, which is a crucial aspect of its mission.

The other options, while relevant to aspects of food safety and regulatory practices, do not capture the core purpose of the FDA as comprehensively. For instance, providing local health departments with inspections addresses a collaborative aspect of food safety enforcement but does not reflect the FDA's overall role. Authoring regulatory food safety laws is part of the FDA’s responsibilities, but it is more of a means to an end—those laws are enacted to achieve the broader goal of ensuring food safety. Management of food waste addresses a specific area of food safety but is not a principal function of the FDA. Therefore, the correct choice highlights the FDA's foundational role in protecting consumers by guaranteeing the safety and quality of food products.