Food Safety and Inspection Service February 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are sponsoring a public meeting on March 15, 2018. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) positions to be discussed at the 50th Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), taking place in Haikou, China between April 9 and 14, 2018. The Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety and the EPA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 50th Session of the CCPR and to address items on the agenda.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend the egg products inspection regulations by requiring official plants that process egg products (herein also referred to as ``egg products plants'' or ``plants'') to develop and implement Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Systems and Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (Sanitation SOPs) and to meet other sanitation requirements consistent with the meat and poultry regulations. FSIS is proposing to eliminate those current regulatory provisions that are inconsistent with HACCP, Sanitation SOPs, and the proposed sanitation requirements. FSIS is also proposing to specify in the regulations that official plants are required to process egg products to be edible without additional preparation to achieve food safety. In addition, FSIS is proposing to: Provide for generic approval as part of the prior label approval system for egg products; make changes to labeling requirements for shell eggs consistent with those in the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) regulations; require special handling instructions on egg products; eliminate the requirements for prior approval by FSIS of egg products plant drawings, specifications, and equipment; incorporate egg products plants into the coverage of the ``Rules of Practice'' that the Agency follows when initiating administrative enforcement actions; and change the Agency's interpretation of the requirement for continuous inspection in agency law. FSIS is also announcing that it is seeking public comment on draft guidance designed to help small and very small plants producing egg products to meet the new regulatory requirements being proposed in this rulemaking. Should the rule become final, FSIS intends to finalize this guidance.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend the Federal meat inspection regulations to establish a new inspection system for market hog slaughter establishments that has been demonstrated to provide public health protection at least equivalent to the existing inspection system. Market hog slaughter establishments that do not choose to operate under the new swine inspection system may continue to operate under their existing inspection system. The Agency is also proposing several changes to the regulations that would affect all establishments that slaughter any swine, regardless of the inspection system under which they operate or the age, size, or class of swine. These proposed changes would allow all swine slaughter establishments to develop sampling plans that are more tailored to their specific operations, and thus be more effective in monitoring their specific process control. These proposed changes also would ensure that before the start of slaughter operations, food-contact surfaces are sanitary and free of enteric pathogens.