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USDA Expands Salmonella Initiative Program to Reduce and Eliminate Pathogens
Program enhances public health protection by encouraging industry-driven innovation to reduce pathogens in raw meat and poultry products
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Neil Gaffney (202) 720-9113
WASHINGTON, July 8, 2011 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and
Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today that it will expand and move ahead on the Salmonella Initiative
Program (SIP) to help reduce Salmonella in raw meat and poultry products. FSIS’ goal is to reduce and
eliminate pathogens before products reach consumers, and the SIP will support those in the industry who want
to utilize pathogen-preventing technologies and techniques.
"Prevention is the best way to protect consumers," said Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Elisabeth
Hagen. "This program will encourage innovation by the industry to make food safer while providing us with
data and information we can use to protect public health."
The voluntary, incentive-based program will allow participating establishments to operate under certain
regulatory waivers in order to try new procedures, equipment or processing techniques to better control
Salmonella. In return, SIP establishments collect product samples on each line during each shift of every day of
production; establishments then use these samples to test for common foodborne pathogens such as Salmonella,
campylobacter and generic E. coli, and share this internal food safety data with FSIS.
"Our goal is to reduce and eliminate pathogens before products reach consumers, and this program is
one way to enlist establishments as partners in that effort," said FSIS Administrator Al Almanza. "It will
improve food safety at the plant level by encouraging industry to test for and take action to reduce pathogens.
At the same time, it gives FSIS access to valuable information that will help us continue to develop the most
effective policies to keep food safe."
The notice
posted today on the FSIS website and soon to publish in the Federal Register announces
several developments and changes regarding SIP, including allowing a limited number of establishments to
operate with modified line speed as long as they participate in a study by the
National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health. The notice also sets new deadlines for establishments currently operating with regulatory
waivers to apply for the program, addresses comments previously received from stakeholders, and invites
further comments on SIP for 60 additional days.
Comments must be received on or before 60 days from publication in the Federal Register and may be
submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov,
or by mail to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, FSIS Docket Clerk, Room 2-2127, George Washington
Carver Center, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Mailstop 5474, Beltsville, MD 20705-5474. All comments must identify
FSIS and docket number FSIS-2006-0034. For further information, contact Daniel Engeljohn, Ph.D., Assistant
Administrator for the Office of Policy and Program Development, FSIS, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Room 349-E, Jamie Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-3700, by phone
(202) 205-0495, fax (202) 720-2025, or e-mail
Daniel.Engeljohn@fsis.usda.gov.
President Obama’s Food Safety Working Group (FSWG) developed three core principles to help guide
food safety in the United States: prioritizing prevention, strengthening surveillance and enforcement,
and improving response and recovery. In the past four months, USDA has announced a variety of new
measures to safeguard the public from foodborne illnesses. In March, USDA announced implementation
of revised and new performance standards which require establishments slaughtering chicken and turkey
to make continued reductions in the occurrence of pathogens. USDA expects the new standards to prevent
as many as 25,000 foodborne illnesses. In April, USDA proposed a new requirement for the meat and
poultry industry called "test and hold" that, once enacted, will significantly reduce the amount of
unsafe food reaching consumers. In May, FSIS launched the Mobile Ask Karen app, a Web-based smartphone
application that brings accessible food safety information to consumers in a new way. And in June,
USDA joined the Ad Council, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to debut
Food Safe Families, their first joint
public service campaign to help families prevent foodborne illnesses in the home.
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Last Modified: July 8, 2011 |
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