The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is amending the Federal poultry products inspection regulations to add Honduras to the list of countries eligible to export poultry products to the United States. The FSIS review of Honduras' laws, regulations, and inspection system demonstrated that its poultry slaughter inspection system is equivalent to the system FSIS has established under the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) and its implementing regulations.

Under this final rule, Honduras will be permitted to export to the United States only raw poultry products, such as whole carcasses produced in certified Honduran establishments, because FSIS only assessed Honduras' poultry slaughter inspection system. Honduras would need to request an equivalence determination and submit additional information records for FSIS to review before FSIS would allow Honduras to export heat-treated poultry products, such as cooked or canned product, to the United States. All products that Honduras exports to the United States will be subject to re-inspection at ports of entry by FSIS inspectors. At this time, Honduras is unable to ship raw poultry product to the United States because it is not recognized by APHIS as being free of Newcastle Disease (ND).

On April 13, 2016, FSIS published a proposed rule in the Federal Register (81 FR 21758) to add Honduras to the list of countries eligible to export poultry products to the United States (9 CFR 381.196(b)). This final rule is consistent with the proposed rule.