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

FSIS is proposing to amend its regulations to define the conditions under which the labeling of meat, poultry, and egg products, as well as voluntarily-inspected products, may bear voluntary label claims indicating that the product is of United States origin. The Agency is taking this action to resolve consumer confusion surrounding current voluntary label claims related to the origin of FSIS-regulated products in the U.S. marketplace. Under this proposal, establishments would not need to include these claims on the label, but if they chose to include them, they would need to meet the requirements in this rule.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) (jointly, we) are announcing the withdrawal of the proposed rule entitled ``General Principles and Food Standards Modernization,'' which published in the Federal Register of May 20, 2005. FDA and FSIS are taking this action in response to comments received in 2005 and in 2020 after FDA reopened the comment period for the proposed rule.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, FSIS is announcing its intention to request renewal of the approved information collection regarding nutrition labeling of the major cuts of single-ingredient raw meat or poultry products and ground or chopped meat and poultry products. There are no changes to the existing information collection. The approval for this information collection will expire on June 30, 2023.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, FSIS is announcing its intention to request renewal of the approved information collection regarding Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (Sanitation SOPs) and pathogen testing and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Systems requirements. There are no changes to the existing information collection. The approval for this information collection will expire on June 30, 2023.

FSIS is amending its regulations to expand the circumstances under which it will generically approve the labels of meat, poultry, and egg products. Also, as of the effective date of this final rule, FSIS will no longer evaluate generically approved labels that establishments and egg products plants voluntarily submit for FSIS review. FSIS is also announcing the availability of revised guidelines on the types of labels that must be submitted to FSIS for approval.

FSIS is establishing January 1, 2026, as the uniform compliance date for new meat and poultry product labeling regulations that will be issued between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2024. FSIS periodically announces uniform compliance dates for new meat and poultry product labeling regulations to minimize the economic impact of label changes.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing that on February 1, 2023, the Agency will expand its routine verification testing for six Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli that are adulterants (non-O157 STEC; O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, or O145), in addition to the adulterant Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157:H7, to ground beef, bench trim, and other raw ground beef components in addition to raw beef manufacturing trimmings in official establishments. The raw ground beef components to be tested for these six non-O157 STEC, hereafter ``other raw ground beef components,'' are: head meat, cheek meat, weasand (esophagus) meat, product from advanced meat recovery (AMR) systems, partially defatted chopped beef and partially defatted beef fatty tissue, low temperature rendered lean finely textured beef, and heart meat. Currently, FSIS tests only its beef manufacturing trimmings samples for these six non- O157 STEC and E. coli O157:H7. Otherwise, all other raw beef products are tested only for E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella. FSIS also will begin testing for these non-O157 STEC in ground beef samples that it collects at retail stores and in applicable samples it collects of imported raw beef products. Additionally, FSIS is responding to comments regarding the STEC testing expansion and the costs and benefits analysis (CBA), as well as its updated STEC laboratory testing criteria for determining whether a result is positive.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, FSIS is announcing its intention to renew the approved information collection regarding specified risk materials in cattle. The approval for this information collection will expire on March 31, 2023. FSIS is making no changes to the information collection.

This notice is announcing that the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) will hold a public meeting of the full Committee on November 15, 2022. The Committee will discuss and vote on adopting the following report: Enhancing Salmonella Control in Poultry Products. An update on the Cyclospora cayetanensis charge will also be provided and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will issue an additional work charge on Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula to the Committee.

FSIS is hosting a virtual public meeting to discuss a regulatory framework that the Agency is considering for a new strategy to control Salmonella in poultry products and more effectively reduce foodborne Salmonella infections linked to these products. The framework under consideration has been shaped by months of information-gathering and discussions with a wide range of stakeholders, researchers, and scientists. FSIS is seeking input from stakeholders on this proposed framework, both at the public meeting and in written comments submitted in response to this Federal Register notice before FSIS moves forward with any proposed changes to the Agency's Salmonella strategy.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, FSIS is announcing its intention to renew the approved information collection regarding the voluntary cooperative interstate shipment program. The approval for this information collection will expire on February 28, 2023. FSIS is making no changes to the information collection.

FSIS is announcing that Lithuania is eligible to export egg products to the United States. FSIS has reviewed Lithuania's laws, regulations, and inspection system, as implemented, and has determined that Lithuania's egg products inspection system is equivalent to the food safety inspection system for egg products that the United States has established under the Egg Products Inspection Act (EPIA) and its implementing regulations. Therefore, egg products produced in certified Lithuanian establishments are eligible for export to the United States. All such products will be subject to reinspection at U.S. points-of- entry by FSIS inspectors.

FSIS is revising the regulations prescribing the statistical methods used in measuring the performance of chemistry laboratories in its voluntary Accredited Laboratory Program (ALP) and expanding the scope of accreditations offered by the program. Currently, participants in the ALP are accredited for the analysis of food chemistry (moisture, protein, fat, and salt), specific chemical residues, and classes of chemical residues. FSIS also is providing for the ALP to accredit non- Federal laboratories for microbiological indicator organisms and pathogen testing. FSIS is changing the statistical method the ALP uses to evaluate laboratory proficiency testing (PT). Additionally, FSIS is making various minor edits and changes to the regulation for the sake of clarity and to incorporate all sample types under the jurisdiction of FSIS.

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposes a new Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) system of records entitled: USDA/FSIS-0005, AssuranceNet (ANet). ANet is a Web-based system that collects information to support FSIS' mission through detecting vulnerabilities in food safety systems, processes, and functions so that the potential for harm can be promptly identified, reduced, and eliminated. The information stored in ANet is gathered from various electronic and paper-based sources, and is used to track, measure, and monitor activities and performance. The System also alerts FSIS' management officials to the performance of critical public health and food defense functions; assists in discerning trends; identifies and focuses on areas of high-risk; and helps to determine strategies to combat threats to food safety and food defense. Within ANet, FSIS maintains contact and other identifying information about Federal employees, State employees, contractors of USDA, government officials, and representatives who work at or are associated with the work at meat and poultry establishments and egg products plants.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend the poultry products inspection regulations to rescind several regulations related to the inspection and condemnation of poultry carcasses affected with any of the forms of avian leukosis complex.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) FSIS is announcing its intention to revise the approved information collection regarding the importation and transportation of meat, poultry, and egg products. The approval for this information collection will expire on July 31, 2022. FSIS is reducing the total burden estimate by 349 hours due to updated information.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing its intention to revise the approved information collection regarding the importation of undenatured inedible product, and samples of imported product for laboratory examination, research, evaluative testing, or trade show exhibition. The approval for this information collection will expire on July 31, 2022. FSIS is reducing the total burden estimate by 14,441 hours because the number of applications for importing meat, poultry or egg products samples destined for laboratory examination, research, evaluative testing, or trade show exhibition has decreased.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, this notice is announcing the intention of the USDA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reestablish the committee for the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) and its charter. The purpose of NACMCF is to provide impartial, scientific advice and peer reviews to Federal food safety agencies for use in the development of an integrated national food safety systems approach that assures the safety of domestic, imported, and exported foods.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing that it intends to list Lithuania as a country eligible to export egg products to the United States. FSIS has reviewed Lithuania's laws, regulations, and documents concerning their egg products inspection system, audited the system as implemented, and determined that Lithuania's egg products inspection system is equivalent to the system that the United States has established under the Egg Products Inspection Act (EPIA) and its implementing regulations. Should FSIS make a final determination to list Lithuania as eligible to ship egg products to the United States, only egg products produced in certified Lithuanian establishments would be eligible for export to the United States. All such products would continue to be subject to re-inspection at U.S. points-of-entry by FSIS inspectors. FSIS is requesting comment before it makes a final determination concerning Lithuania's equivalence for egg products. FSIS will announce its final determination in a subsequent Federal Register notice.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing the availability of two updated guidelines for meat and poultry establishments concerning the destruction of Salmonella and other pathogens during cooking of ready-to-eat (RTE) meat and poultry products (lethality) and the control of the growth of spore-forming Clostridial pathogens in heat-treated RTE and not-ready-to-eat (NRTE) meat and poultry products during cooling and hot-holding (stabilization). The updated guidelines reflect changes made in response to comments received on the 2017 versions of these guidelines.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing its intention to revise the approved information collection regarding records to be kept by official establishments and retail stores that grind raw beef products. The approval for this information collection will expire on March 31, 2022. FSIS is reducing the burden hours for this collection by 1,658,651 hours after consulting with several establishments and retail stores because they typically use half of the time initially estimated for the collection of records.

This notice is announcing a public meeting of the full Committee and Subcommittees from November 17, 2021 to November 19, 2021. The Committee will discuss the following two new charges: Enhancing Salmonella Control in Poultry Products and Cyclospora cayetanensis Contamination.

In July 2019, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) published and requested comment on a guideline for establishments producing multi-component kit products that contain inspected and assembled meat or poultry components. FSIS is announcing updates to this guideline and responding to comments received on the guideline. FSIS intends for this guideline to help establishments and other food handling facilities producing a multi-component food kit determine whether the kit product needs to be prepared under FSIS inspection and how to label a kit product that contains fully labeled meat or poultry components. The guideline represents current FSIS thinking, and FSIS will update it as necessary to reflect comments received and any additional information that becomes available.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is publishing this advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) to request comments pertaining to the labeling of meat and poultry products comprised of or containing cultured cells derived from animals subject to the Federal Meat Inspection Act or the Poultry Products Inspection Act. Issues raised in the comments submitted in response to this ANPR will inform future rulemaking to establish labeling requirements for these products. This ANPR also discusses how FSIS will generally evaluate labels for these products if they are submitted before the Agency completes rulemaking.