March 2023 Snapshots
Camilla, Ga.
On Jan. 13, the inspection team at a poultry slaughter and processing establishment donated dog food, cat food, treats and supplies to Stitches for Mitchell County, a local animal shelter.
Pictured, from left: Stiches Vice President Susan Jamerson, Supervisory Consumer Safety Inspector Junisha Brown.
Photo by a Stiches staff member.
Arlington, Texas
On Feb. 22, Administrator Paul Kiecker presented Consumer Safety Inspector Aisha Woodberry with an Operational Excellence coin for her participation in the January Employee Townhall and being the first to turn on her camera since the virtual platform started. Kiecker also invited CSI Woodberry to be his guest at a nearby speaking event tailored to small and very small establishments.
Pictured, from left: Kiecker and Woodberry.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
New York City, N.Y.
On Feb. 28, a team of managers and investigators with the Office of Investigation, Enforcement and Audit (OIEA) met with attorneys with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, Civil Division, to discuss active civil enforcement cases, ongoing collaboration between the two agencies, and strategies to enhance continued successful legal actions for violations of FSIS statutes. During the visit, the OIEA group presented Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Rosenbaum and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Yalen with plaques in appreciation of their exceptional work on a recent civil case that enforced FSIS laws and obtained a $250,000 civil penalty.
Pictured, from left: OIEA Compliance and Investigation Division (CID) Supervisory Investigator Lauren Behar, Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Robert Yalen, CID Compliance Investigator Nicholas Milo, AUSA Jessica Rosenbaum and OIEA Enforcement Operations Staff Team Lead Troy Hambright.
Photo by CID Northeast Regional Director Joseph Priore, OIEA.
Raleigh, N.C.
On Jan. 25, Administrator Paul Kiecker met with FSIS personnel at the Office of Field Operations Raleigh District Office. Kiecker and the team spoke about their career journey, hiring and onboarding, making FSIS a best place to work and the numerous employee-centered programs offered at FSIS.
Pictured, back row on stairs from left: CEC Tier II Helpdesk Travis James; Office of Investigations, Enforcement and Audit Investigator John Zeberan; District Case Specialist David Lilly. Standing: Office of Management (OM) Human Resource Specialists Jamie Noe and Joe Clark; Resource Management Specialists (RMS) Sharon Barbry; Supervisory Enforcement Investigations and Analysis Officer (EIAO) Matt Nowicki; RMS Cheryl Davis; Resource Management Assistant Marlene Kegley; Deputy District Manager Dr. Roger Murphy, EIAO Selena Barbee; RMSs Timothy Carter, Erica McDonald, and Yanci Evans; Supervisory Public Health Veterinarians Dr. Larrina Williams, Dr. Danisha Bullock and Dr. Ashley Gauze; Kiecker; OM Human Resource Specialist Valerie Thomas; District Veterinary Medical Specialist Dr. Travis Auxier.
Seated, from left: Deputy District Manager Mark Roling, Frontline Supervisor Dr. Anne Luedtke, Office of Planning, Analysis and Risk Management Senior Data Analyst Jay Gallons; Office of Public Health Science Senior Risk Assessor Dr. Sunil Kumar; Resource Coordinator Laura Hutchison; District Manager Todd Furey.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Wilkesboro, N.C.
On Jan. 26, Administrator Paul Kiecker met with FSIS personnel at a chicken slaughter and processing facility. Kiecker and the team spoke about their career journeys, moving throughout the nation while working for FSIS, the $1,000 referral award program (see Notice 55-22), flexible work schedules (see Notice 04-23) and the Salmonella framework initiative.
Standing, from left: Supervisory Consumer Safety Inspector Rodney Griffin; Kiecker; Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSIs) Vicky Garcia, Randy Humphries, Robbie Anderson and Joshua Church; Deputy District Manager Mark Roling; CSI Miranda Thompson; Frontline Supervisor Galen Springle; CSI Thomas Mastin, Supervisory Public Health Veterinarians Dr. Terry Stauffer III and Dr. Bryan DeGraff; CSIs Charlie Combs and Gina White.
Seated, from left: CSIs Michael Rodriguez, Calvin Clary, Lisa Royall, and Tammy Margriter; Public Health Training Coordinator (OEED) Dr. Christie Royal, CSI William Wolfe.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
From left: Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSIs) Steve Absher, Crystal Thomas, Patricia Wagoner and Donald Hall; Frontline Supervisor Galen Springle; CSIs Sharon Owens (mostly obscured) and Randy Humphries; District Case Specialist David Lilly; CSIs Vicky Garcia and Clete Jarvis; Supervisory CSI Dexter Anthony; Kiecker; Deputy District Manager Mark Roling.
Seated: Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Photo by Public Health Training Coordinator Dr. Christie Royal, OEED.
Wilkesboro, N.C.
On Jan. 26, Administrator Paul Kiecker met with FSIS personnel at a ham processing facility, walked the facility and congratulated Consumer Safety Inspector (CSI) Mary Steele on her upcoming retirement.
Pictured, from left: District Case Specialist David Lilly; Deputy District Manager Mark Roling; establishment managers Bobby Lovette and Scott Wagoner; Office of Employee Education and Development Public Health Training Coordinator Dr. Christie Royal; Steele; Frontline Supervisor Galen Springle; Kiecker; Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Photo by an establishment employee.
Omaha, Neb.
On Feb. 15, Deputy Under Secretary Sandra Eskin visited inspection program personnel at a beef slaughter and processing establishment. She answered inspection staff questions and talked with them about current topics. They also discussed the process of beef slaughter, fabrication and grinding operations. Eskin saw everything from how the animals arrive to how the inspection staff ensures that safe and wholesome products enter commerce. The in-plant FSIS employees were happy to have a someone from headquarters observe the time and effort they put in to help keep our food supply safe.
Pictured, from left: Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSI) Debra Schilling and Jason Wilderman; Eskin; CSI Jesse Blake; Supervisory CSI Jennifer Spies.
Photo by Frontline Circuit Supervisor Dr. Douglas Suntrup, OFO.
Athens and Bethlehem, Ga.
On Jan. 26, leadership from USDA Headquarters visited two poultry establishments.
In Athens, pictured, front row, from left: Atlanta District Deputy District Manager (DDM) Dr. Edward Hepburn; Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian (SPHV) and Inspector-in-Charge Dr. Tia Turner; Food Inspectors Linda McIntosh and Louise Cofer; Office of Public Health Science OPHS Assistant Administrator Dr. Denise Eblen.
Back row, from left. Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Emilio Esteban; Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSIs) Katherine Gillespie and Robert Critzer.
Photo by Office of Field Operations Assistant Administrator Dr. Phil Bronstein.
In Bethlehem, pictured, from left: Esteban; CSIs Marilynn Pittard, Anthony Taylor and Ben Bowers; SPHV Dr. Molette Bradley; Assistant Administrator for OFO Dr. Philip Bronstein; Atlanta DDM Dr. Edward Hepburn; CSI Brenda Thomas; Frontline Supervisor Dr. Brian Smith; Assistant Administrator for OPHS Dr. Denise Eblen.
Photo by an establishment employee.
Elizabeth, N.J.
On Jan. 30, Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed met with FSIS personnel in a roundtable meeting with three circuits and the Office of Investigation, Enforcement and Audit. The group discussed the importance of clear communication across FSIS, shared some frustrations with timeliness of the Client Experience Center Help Desk, and offered ideas for making the onboarding process (orientation and trainings) more effective. One comment that was repeated was how there are so many great people that work at FSIS.
Pictured, standing, from left: Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSIs) Pilar Perry, Michael Perchiacca, James McDonald, William Stewart, Karrar Beg, Frank DiMarco, Raj Rajeswaran, Louis Labrutto, Andy Saiteros, Waqar Ahmed, Jamal Ferguson, and Nur Faisal; Supervisory Consumer Safety Officer Phillip McMahon; CSIs Moustafa Arnaoot and Charles Jessa; Food Inspector (FI) Stephen Allen; CSI Tene Scott; Frontline Supervisor (FLS) Dr. Robert Munson; CSI Asif Rana; Reed; CSIs Abdul Manzoor and Shaik Manzoor; and Supervisory CSI Maria Castillo.
Seated, from left: CSIs John Rosero, Elisa Ayala, and Maged Bekiet; Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath; FLS Stanley Price; CSIs Vanessa Lee, Raouf Abdelsayed, and Harjinder Mondair; Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Regan Nebenhaus.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Pictured, standing, from left: CSIs Jose Salazar and Frank Tang; Compliance Investigator Daniel Holmes; Assistant Administrator for the Office of Investigation, Enforcement and Audit Robert Bane; CSIs Nicholas Moy, Winston Thom and Ahmed Hassan; Reed; FLS Stanley Price; FI Francisco Abreu; CSIs Mohammad Jamil, Dieumene Belfort, Kenneth Anderson, Ranfis Pontelira and Suzzette Wray.
Seated, from left: Compliance Investigator Paul Calafiore, Supervisory Investigator Donald Russell; Deputy Regional Director Thomas Collaro; Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath; FLS Shing Tat Lau; CSIs Ahsan Mahmood, Aubenson Henry, Victor Cole, Joseph Bustamante and Earnecia Powers.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Carteret, N.J.
On Jan. 30, Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed and Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath met with IPP at a livestock slaughter establishment. The group was able to observe Halal slaughter and talk about both their individual career journeys and their excitement for advancement opportunities available in FSIS.
Pictured, from left: Deputy District Manager Dr. Arial Thompson, Burns-Rath, CSI Tyler Blake, Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Regan Nebenhaus, Senior Public Health Officer Dr. Evelyn Crish, Frontline Supervisor Stanley Price.
Photo by Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed, OA.
Trenton, N.J.
On Jan. 31, Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed and Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath met with inspection program personnel at a livestock slaughter establishment, where they spoke about career advancement opportunities available with FSIS and the ability to shadow other positions in FSIS (see Notice 38-22).
Pictured, from left: Consumer Safety Inspector Yoriann Cabrera Bartolomei, Supervisory Consumer Safety Inspector Ashlyn Parise, Burns-Rath, Senior Public Health Officer Dr. Evelyn Crish, Deputy District Manager Dr. Arial Thompson, Frontline Supervisor Dr. Robert Munson, Reed, Relief Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Anil Sharma, and Food Inspector Michael Cornell.
Photo by Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Logan, N.J.
On Jan. 31, Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed and Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath met with FSIS personnel at an export establishment. The team spoke about connectivity issues, challenges with PHIS, and ideas for how PHIS can be enhanced. They also discussed the $1,000 referral award (see Notice 55-22), flexible work schedules (see Notice 04-23) and the importance of communication.
Pictured, standing, from left: Frontline Supervisor Dr. Robert Munson, Consumer Safety Inspectors (CSI) Joanne Burgos and Frances Famille; Burns-Rath, Deputy District Manager Dr. Arial Thompson; CSIs Emidio Dipasquo and Hinah Shaikh; Supervisory CSI Phillip McMahon; CSIs Natale Marino, Betty Hemple and Elvert Flowers.
Kneeling, from left: CSI Maurice Wallace and Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte, OA.
Photo by Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed, OA.
Vineland, N.J.
On Jan. 31, Chief Operating Officer Todd Reed and Assistant Administrator for the Office of International Coordination Meg Burns-Rath met with FSIS personnel at an import establishment. The team spoke about their career journeys, shadow opportunities with other offices (see Notice 38-22) and opportunities to gain efficiencies related to import inspection.
Pictured, from left: Deputy District Manager Dr. Arial Thompson; Reed; Burns-Rath; Supervisory Investigator Donald Russell; Consumer Safety Inspector (CSI) Hasan Zafar; Frontline Supervisor William Stewart; CSIs Ricardo Icart, Mary DeMarino, Linda Martinelli and Gillian Nardelli; Compliance Investigator Robert Simms; Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Witte.
Photo by Frontline Supervisor Dr. Robert Munson, OFO.