Meat, Poultry Groups Want HACCP Amendments

May 17, 2000

A group of meat and poultry organizations wants USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to recognize programs such as good manufacturing practices as components of the hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) regulations. They asked that a HACCP system be found inadequate only when adulterated products have been shipped.

Filing the petition with FSIS were the American Meat Institute, American Association of Meat Processors, National Chicken Council, National Food Processors Association, National Meat Association, National Turkey Federation and the North American Meat Processors. FSIS noted that the petition "contains no data or examples to support the requests it makes."

A HACCP system "should result in a food inspection system with a much higher level of private and public cooperation," the groups wrote in the petition. "Ideally, under HACCP government and industry would find themselves working together to monitor food safety compliance with the goal of providing the safest possible meat and poultry supply."

But FSIS has too narrowly interpreted its rule making and ignores the "common sense approach needed to make HACCP successful." They point out that there are other components of a HACCP system that the agency should recognize such as good manufacturing practice programs and that FSIS does not permit prerequisite programs to address food safety concerns.

FSIS will accept comments on the petition until July 14.