Tag Archives: USDA

Eggs

USDA Proposes Rule to Make Egg Products Safer

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Eggs

Earlier this week the USDA’s FSIS proposed to amend inspection regulations, modernizing food safety inspection systems, in an effort to make egg products safer. It would require official plants that process egg products to develop HACCP systems, sanitation standard operating procedures and meet sanitation requirements consistent with meat and poultry regulations.

“FSIS is proposing that official plants will be required to produce egg products in such a way that the finished product is free of detectable pathogens,” according to a USDA news release. “The regulatory amendment also uses agency’s resources more efficiently and removes unnecessary regulatory obstacles to innovation.”

FSIS will also be taking over jurisdiction of egg substitutes.

According to the agency, the financial impact of the proposed rule could be minimal, as it states 93% of egg products plants already have a written HACCP plan that deals with at least one production step in the process.

Once published in the Federal Register, a 120-comment period will go into effect.

Listeria

Four Pathogens Cause Nearly 2 Million Foodborne Illness Cases a Year

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Listeria

The CDC estimates that Salmonella, E. coli O157, Listeria monocytogenes and Campylobacter cause 1.9 million cases of foodborne illness in the United States. A report just released from the Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration (IFSAC) analyzed data from more than 1000 foodborne disease outbreaks involving these pathogens from1998 through 2013.

The report found the following:

  • Salmonella illnesses came from a wide variety of foods (more than 75% came from the seven food categories of seeded vegetables, eggs, chicken, other produce, pork, beef and fruit.
  • More than 75% of E.coli O157 illnesses were linked to vegetable row crops, like leaf greens, and beef.
  • More than 75% of Listeria monocytogenes illnesses came from fruits and dairy products.
  • More than 80% of non-dairy Campylobacter illnesses were linked to chicken, other seafood (i.e., shellfish), seeded vegetables, vegetable row crops, and other meat and poultry (i.e., lamb or duck).

A copy of the report, “Foodborne illness source attribution estimates for 2013 for Salmonella, Escherichia coli O157, Listeria monocytogenes, and Campylobacter using multi-year outbreak surveillance data, United States”, is available on the CDC’s website.

USDA Logo

New Leadership at USDA, Almanza Heads to JBS

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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USDA Logo

Over the past week, the USDA has undergone changes in top leadership. Following 39 years with FSIS, Deputy Undersecretary for Food Safety and FSIS Administrator Al Almanza retired. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the appointment of Carmen Rottenberg as acting deputy undersecretary for food safety and Paul Kiecker was named acting administrator for FSIS. Rottenberg and Kiecker will serve in these roles until presidential nominees are confirmed by the Senate.

“Highlights for me have been using a science-based approach to modernize the poultry slaughter inspection system, implementing the Public Health Information System (PHIS), reducing listeriosis and E. coli O157:H7 illnesses from FSIS-regulated products and adding six other dangerous strains of E. coli to the zero-tolerance list, and implementing performance standards for Campylobacter and Salmonella.” – Al Almanza reflecting on his time leading the USDA

Almanza has been hired by U.S.-based meat processor JBS to serve as the global head of food safety and quality assurance. The company has more than 300,000 customers in more than 150 countries. “During his long and storied career at FSIS, Al earned the respect and admiration of his peers for his team-based management approach and his willingness to partner with both industry and public health organizations to ensure the provision of safe, quality food to consumers,” said JBS Global President of Operations Gilberto Tomazoni in a company press release. “JBS is privileged to have someone of Al’s caliber join our company.”

Sabrett hot dog recall

More than 7 Million Pounds of Hot Dogs Recalled Nationwide

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Sabrett hot dog recall

On Saturday the USDA announced a Class I nationwide recall of 7,196,084 pounds of hot dog products from Marathon Enterprises, Inc. Produced between March 17, 2017 and July 4, 2017, the certain beef and pork hot dog and sausage items may contain bone fragments.

The issue was uncovered via the FSIS Complaint Monitoring System on July 10, which stated that pieces of bone were found in the product. No injuries have been reported yet.

USDA Recall Classification of Class I Recall: “This is a health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.”

FSIS has posted a full list of the recalled items on its website.

Beef ban

USDA Suspends Imports of All Fresh Beef from Brazil

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Beef ban

Yesterday Sonny Perdue, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture announced that the USDA would be halting all imports of fresh beef from Brazil. The USDA has been inspecting all of the meat products entering the United States from Brazil since March, and has refused entry to 11% of fresh beef products. According to an agency press release, this figure is “substantially higher than the rejection rate of 1% of shipments from the rest of the world”. The increased inspection has resulted in refusal of entry to about 1.9 million pounds of Brazilian beef products over concerns related to public health, sanitary conditions and animal health.

“Although international trade is an important part of what we do at USDA, and Brazil has long been one of our partners, my first priority is to protect American consumers. That’s what we’ve done by halting the import of Brazilian fresh beef.” – Sonny Perdue, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

The USDA is suspending shipments until the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture takes corrective action that the agency finds adequate.

Recall

325,000 Pounds of Meat Lard Products Recalled due to Processing Deviation

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Recall

On Friday the USDA announced a large recall of 325,000 pounds of meat and poultry fat and lard products by Supreme Cuisine. The Class I recall is due to a processing deviation that could cause bacterial pathogens to grow and survive in the products. The duck, beef and pork fat and lard products, which have a one-year shelf life, were produced and packaged from June 1, 2016 through May 8, 2017.

The issue was uncovered after Supreme Cuisine received a consumer complaint of a loose lid. There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of the products, and consumers are being urged to discard any of these products.

FSIS is providing a full list of the recalled products here on its website.

American beef

United States and China Finalize Details on Beef Exports

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American beef

On Tuesday Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the posting of technical documents pertaining to the shipments of U.S. beef to China. Last month the United States and China reached a trade agreement that allowed the export of American beef to China, where the meat has been banned since 2003.

The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service posted the requirements for the Export Verification program for U.S. companies shipping to China. The program will allow packers to apply for approval to export to China. In addition, FSIS updated its online Export Library with China’s requirements for certifying U.S. beef.

According to the USDA, China’s beef imports have increased from $275 million in 2012 to $2.5 billion in 2016. As the world’s largest beef producer, the United States generated more than $5.4 billion in global sales last year.

Hot dog recall

Recall: Metal May Have Contaminated 210,000 Pounds of Hot Dogs

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Hot dog recall

Following three complaints of metal objects found in product packages, John Morrell and Co. has recalled about 210,606 pounds of ready-to-eat hot dog products. The following franks subject to the Class II recall were distributed to retail locations nationwide and produced on January 26, 2017: 14-oz sealed film packages containing Nathans Skinless 8 Beef Franks (use by date of August 19, 2017) and 16-oz sealed film packages of Curtis Beef Master Beef Franks (use by date June 15, 2017).

Thus far there have been no reports of adverse reactions or injury as a result of consuming these products.

American beef

USDA Announces American Beef to Return to Chinese Market

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American beef

Today U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue praised a trade agreement reached between the United States and China that is allowing the return of American beef to the Chinese market for the first time in 13 years. The ban has been in place since 2003 following a case of mad cow disease. However, China’s domestic cattle population is not keeping up with the increased consumer demand.

“This is tremendous news for the American beef industry, the agriculture community, and the U.S. economy in general.  We will once again have access to the enormous Chinese market, with a strong and growing middle class, which had been closed to our ranchers for a long, long time.  I commend the persistence of President Trump, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, the U.S. Trade Representative’s officials, and our own USDA professionals.  I also thank our Chinese counterparts, who worked so hard to get this agreement into place.  When the Chinese people taste our high-quality U.S. beef, there’s no doubt in my mind that they’ll want more of it.” – Sonny Perdue, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Under the trade agreement, cooked Chinese poultry may be imported into the United States once issues related to safety and hygiene are addressed.

Trump Administration Puts Gag Order on Federal Agencies

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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After only a few days in office, President Trump and his administration have placed a gag order on federal agencies, including the USDA and EPA. Workers are barred from communicating with the press, the public or members of Congress, according to several outlets. A memo was reportedly sent to the EPA, instructing the agency not to publish any press releases, social media posts or blogs until told otherwise.

The Washington Post  reports that the chief of the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Sharon Drumm sent an email to staff stating, “Starting immediately and until further notice, ARS will not release any public-facing documents. This includes, but is not limited to, news releases, photos, fact sheets, news feeds, and social media content.” However, another memo sent out today by USDA Acting Deputy Administrator Michael Young said that he did not review the ARS guidance and would not have sent out such a draft. According to the Post, “his guidance does not place a gag order on publication to scientific journals, does not place a blanket freeze on press releases, or prohibit food safety announcements.”

Earlier this week, President Trump nominated Sonny Perdue, former governor of Georgia, to lead the USDA.