FSIS Issues Notice Clarifying Scheduling of Food Safety Assessments

(American Meat Institute)

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued notice 78-08, which clarifies when District Office (DO) personnel are to schedule Enforcement, Investigations, and Analysis Officers (EIAOs) to conduct Food Safety Assessments (FSAs) and Intensified Verification Testing (IVT) in response to a positive pathogen result in FSIS product testing.

According to the notice, a DO should schedule an EIAO to conduct an FSA within 30 days of being notified:

1. of an FSIS ready-to-eat (RTE) product sample for ALLRTE, RTE001, or EM31 that tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes(Lm), E. coli O157:H7, or Salmonella;

2. of an FSIS sample of raw beef product that tested positive for E. coli O157:H7;

3. that another government entity has identified Lm, E. coli O157:H7, or Salmonella in RTE product or E. coli O157:H7 in raw beef product; or

4. by the in-plant inspection team that they have documented repetitive occurrences of noncompliance in the establishment’s Lm control program, including sanitation issues.

To view this notice, click here: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FSISNotices/78-08.pdf