FSIS Announces Changes in Leadership Team

On May 11, 2018, FSIS’ top officials, Carmen Rottenberg and Paul Kiecker, announced several changes in the FSIS leadership team as part of Secretary Perdue’s goal of making USDA the most efficient and effective Agency in the federal government.

The leadership changes are as follows:

• Hany Sidrak has been selected to be the Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Field Operations (OFO). He most recently served as an Executive Associate for Regulatory Operations (EARO) in OFO.
• Michael Watts will move from Assistant Administrator for the Office of Outreach, Employee Education and Training (OOEET) to an EARO position in OFO.
• Soumaya Tohamy will transition from Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Data Integration and Food Protection (ODIFP) to Assistant Administrator for OOEET.
• David Goldman has accepted a position at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Denise Eblen has been selected to serve as Assistant Administrator for the Office of Public Health Science (OPHS). She comes to FSIS from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture where she led the Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition.
• Karen Becker has been selected as the Director of the FSIS China Office in Beijing, China. She most recently was the Director of the Applied Epidemiology Staff in OPHS.
• Todd Furey has been selected as District Manager for the Raleigh District Office in OFO. He is currently serving as Acting International Coordination Executive.
• Phil Bronstein has been selected to be an Executive Associate for Regulatory Operations (EARO) in OFO. He most recently served as the Director of the Science Staff in OPHS.

Secretary Perdue Appoints New Members to National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods

On May 14, 2018, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the appointment of 18 new members and 12 returning members to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF).

NACMCF was established in 1988 by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the Department of Commerce (National Marine Fisheries Service), and the U.S. Department of Defense. NACMCF is a discretionary advisory committee that provides impartial scientific advice and peer reviews to food safety agencies on public health issues related to the safety and wholesomeness of domestic, imported and exported foods.

To view the list of the newly appointed and reappointed NACMCF members, please visit: https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2018/05/14/secretary-perdue-appoints-new-members-national-advisory-committee.

Secretary Perdue Appoints New Members to National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection

On May 15, 2018, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the appointment of five new members and 12 returning members to the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI).

NACMPI was established in 1971 by the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). NACMPI is a discretionary advisory committee that advises on food safety concerns and other matters affecting federal and state inspection program activities. It also contributes to USDA’s regulatory policy development.

To view the list of the newly appointed and reappointed NACMCF members, please visit: https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2018/05/15/secretary-perdue-appoints-new-members-national-advisory-committee.  

FSIS Posts Individual Salmonella Category Status for Poultry Carcass Establishments and Aggregate Results for Chicken Parts, Comminuted Poultry and Poultry Carcasses Tested for Salmonella and Campylobacter

On May 21, 2018, FSIS will update the individual establishments’ category status for Salmonella performance standards for poultry carcasses at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/science-data/data-sets-visualizations/microbiology.   

FSIS also will update the aggregate sampling results relative to process control categories for establishments producing young chicken or turkey carcasses, raw chicken parts or not ready-to-eat (NRTE) comminuted poultry products at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/science-data/data-sets-visualizations/microbiology.

FSIS Posts Peer Review Plan for the Market Hog Risk Assessment on its Website

On May 10, 2018, FSIS posted the Peer Review Plan for the Assessment of Potential Changes in Human Risk of Salmonella Illness Associated with Modernizing Inspection of Market Hog Slaughter Establishments (market hog risk assessment), which was used to inform the proposed rule Modernization of Swine Slaughter Inspection (83 FR 4780, Feb. 1, 2018). The Peer Review Plan, market hog risk assessment, and the proposed rule are available on FSIS’ website at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/federal-register-rulemaking. Following the Peer Review Plan, the peer review will end in July 2018.

The overall approach and statistical methods used in the market hog risk assessment are very similar to those used in the poultry slaughter risk assessment conducted for the final rule Modernization of Poultry Slaughter Inspection (79 FR 49566, Aug. 21, 2014). The poultry slaughter risk assessment was peer reviewed and published in peer-reviewed journals.

Policy Updates

FSIS notices and directives on public health and regulatory issues are available at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/directives-notices. The following policy updates were recently issued:

• Notice 27-18 - Use of New/Revised Export Certificates (FSIS Forms 9060-5 and 9060-5S), Continuation Sheets (FSIS Forms 9060-5A and 9060-5B) and Application for Export (FSIS Form 9060-6)
• Notice 28-18 - New Security Paper and Seven Digit Export Stamp for Use With the Export Module of the Public Health Information System
• Directive 1300.1 - Information Technology Capital Planning and Investment Control
• Docket No. FSIS-2018-0005 -Eliminating Unnecessary Requirements for Hog Carcass Cleaning
• Docket No. FSIS-2018-0017 - Notice of Request for Revision of an Approved Information Collection (Voluntary Recalls of Meat, Poultry, and Egg Products)
• Docket No. FSIS-2018-0018 - Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection

Export Requirements Updates

The Library of Export Requirements has been updated for products for the following countries:

• India
• Ukraine

For a complete list of countries, visit https://www.fsis.usda.gov/inspection/import-export.