Deadline Approaches for Registration of Meat and Poultry Handlers
This notice announces the availability of FSIS Form 5020-1, Registration of Meat and Poultry Program Handlers as announced in the Federal Register: Docket No. 01-034N  and Docket No. 01-034E. The notice informs program personnel where to direct individuals inquiring about the new form and provides guidance on the type of information that should be available in the records meat and poultry program handlers are required to maintain. Please note the deadline for all applicable businesses to register with the Agency is May 24, 2004.

Because of changes to the FSIS Form 5020-1, all non-federally inspected parties, including those already registered, are required to submit a new form to FSIS. Under the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act, the following parties are required to register with FSIS and maintain records that fully and correctly disclose all transactions: meat brokers; poultry products; brokers; renderers; animal food manufacturers; wholesalers; public warehousemen; and persons that engage in the business of buying, selling, transporting in commerce, or importing any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased livestock or poultry, or parts of the carcasses of livestock or poultry that have died otherwise than by slaughter (and are not federally-inspected establishments).

The forms can be obtained at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/forms/index.asp  For more information please visit: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/FSIS_notices_index/

Summer 2004 Grilling Season Safest in Years
Statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that E. coli O157:H7 illnesses have dropped 36 percent in the last year alone. This is great news for Americans heading into the summer grilling season.

"The CDC report adds to the body of evidence indicating real progress is being made toward our goals of preventing foodborne illness and protecting public health," said Dr. Elsa Murano, USDA's under secretary for food safety. "The decline can be attributed in part to USDA's aggressive, science-based policies specifically targeting these deadly bacteria in raw ground beef and increased consumer awareness of basic food safety principles."

CDC's data are consistent with data from samples of meat collected by FSIS. Between 2002 and 2003, the percentage of raw ground beef regulatory samples testing positive for E. coli O157:H7 dropped 62 percent.

Although Americans have good cause to feel reassured by these figures, Murano urged grilling enthusiasts to heed USDA's key messages of Clean, Separate, Cook and Chill for a safe Memorial Day and throughout the barbecue season.

• Clean
  Before grilling and handling food, wash your hands with hot soapy water. Wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and counter tops with hot soapy water after preparing each food item and before going on to the next food.
• Separate
  Separate raw meat and poultry from ready-to-eat foods during preparation and grilling, so that raw juices do not come into contact with other foods. Never place cooked food on a plate that previously held raw meat, poultry or other perishable foods, including egg products.
• Cook
  Cook to proper temperatures. Use a food thermometer to measure the internal temperature of your burgers to make sure they are cooked all the way through. By cooking ground beef to at least 160°F will you can be certain that E.coli O157:H7 and other bacteria are killed.
• Chill
  Refrigerate or freeze perishables, grilled foods and leftovers within two hours or within one hour if the outside temperature is above 90°F. Divide large amounts of leftovers into shallow containers for quick cooling in the refrigerator.

• May 25: Health and Safety Fest, Dayton, Ohio
• May 26: Elementary School, Blanchester, Ohio
• May 27: EElementary School, Cincinnati, Ohio

• USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline
• Federal Inspection Programs
• FSIS Science