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The People Who Carry Food Safety

By Azure Edwards, M.S.
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This series examines food safety as business infrastructure: the business decisions, governance structures, and operational conditions that determine whether technical food safety systems can hold under production pressure. The first three articles followed the operation inward, from the corrective action log through the cost of repetition to what growth asks a system to carry. The fourth followed it outward, to the public. This final article turns to the people who carry it all on their shoulders.

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Recall
Recall
Beltway Beat

Beyond the Recall Count: A Leading-Indicator Framework for Measuring Food Safety System Health

By Santoshi Muriki
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Here we propose a dual scoreboard, comprised of leading and lagging statistics taken from actual operations and the system’s output — as expressed through recall and outbreak incidents. The work is the first application of the concepts on top of a tier approach to supplier risk employed throughout a multi-supplier grocery distribution system and presented as a launch pad for further industry and regulatory comment.

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Handshake
Handshake
Ask The Expert

Food Safety as Business Infrastructure Series (Article 4 of 5): Brand Trust: The Public as the Final Reviewer of Your Food Safety System

By Azure Edwards, M.S.
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This series examines food safety as business infrastructure: the business decisions, governance structures, and operational conditions that determine whether technical food safety systems can hold under production pressure. The first three articles followed the record inward—from the corrective-action log, through the cost of repetition, to what growth asks a system to carry. This article follows that same operational reality outward.

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Beltway Beat

Dr. Justin Ransom, Administrator, USDA’s FSIS to present at the Food Safety Consortium Conference, Oct.21-23, in Washington DC

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Dr. Justin Ransom, administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will present at this year’s Food Safety Consortium Conference October 21-23 in Washington DC along side, Dr. Donald A. Prater, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Food, FDA.

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From the Editor’s Desk

Food Safety Tech Launches FSTR – Food Safety Tech Research to Bring Independent Benchmark Intelligence to the Food Industry

By Candace Taylor
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FSTR is being launched in conjunction with its anchor research study: The Food Safety Digital Maturity Benchmark, giving food manufacturers an independent way to measure the impacts of digital transformation, technology adoption, and operational performance. The study findings will debut at the 15th Anniversary Food Safety Consortium Conference & Expo, October 21-23, in Washington DC.

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Beltway Beat

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announces two significant actions on GRAS and UPFs

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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HHS proposed a rule requiring manufacturers to notify the FDA when concluding that the use of a substance added to human or animal food is GRAS and, alongside the USDA, submitted for final review the federal government’s first proposed definition of ultra-processed foods (UPFs). Critics complain that while the GRAS rule would require manufacturers to notify the FDA when they determine a new food substance is GRAS, manufacturers would still self-determine that safety conclusion themselves. Substances introduced into the market before the regulations go into effect, would be eligible for a separate, time-limited streamlined submission pathway.

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FDA Logo
FDA Logo
Beltway Beat

The FDA is implementing a major reorganization plan called “Simple Reform” on October 1, 2026

By Food Safety Tech Staff, Rick Biros
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The FDA is implementing a major reorganization plan called “Simple Reform” on October 1, 2026, which shifts field inspectors from specialized product roles back to generalist investigators and centralizes administrative functions. The food and beverage industry should expect a shift in audit dynamics, meaning audits will likely focus less on highly specific, niche technical processes and more on foundational, broad-spectrum quality systems. Dr. Stephen Ostroff and Frank Yiannas, both former Deputy Commissioners at FDA offer their opinions on Simple Reform.

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