@Risk

The US Department of Agriculture has proposed a new requirement for the meat and poultry industry, and the agency says this new rule will significantly reduce serious recalls for meat and poultry products.

Currently, when USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) collects a sample for testing, the sampled products are requested –but not required –to be held until test results are known. With the proposed requirement, FSIS would be able to hold products from commerce until its test results for harmful substances are received.

FSIS inspects billions of pounds of meat, poultry and processed egg products each year, and it estimates that 44 of the most serious recalls between 2007 and 2009 could have been prevented if this additional safeguard had been in place.

“There is no more fundamental function of government than keeping its people safe from harm, and today we are taking another proactive approach to further prevent consumers from falling victim to foodborne illness,” Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, said. “We believe this will result in fewer products with dangerous pathogens reaching store shelves and dinner tables. In addition, by testing and holding at US points-of-entry, FSIS will also strengthen safety efforts focused on imported food – offering an additional safeguard to American consumers.”

President Obama’s Food Safety Working Group (FSWG) developed three core principles to help guide food safety in the United States: (more…)

Late last month, a coalition of global food and health organizations government agencies, academic institutions, and nonprofit communication experts launched a collaborative initiative to help ensure a collective international resource of food-specific risk communication.

The International Center of Excellence in Food Risk Communication aims to:

• Increase the effectiveness of food risk communication, thereby enabling informed decisions about food safety, nutrition, and health;

• Convene credible and influential governmental, communications, and health authorities to maximize their individual and collective reach and effectiveness for the public good; and

• Contribute to the international body of knowledge on food risk communication.

The Center’s website provides resources to help government officials, health professionals, academicians, food producers, journalists, the public, and others communicate concepts, practices, research, and data about food safety, nutrition, and health. The website also includes content from other leading global institutions involved in risk communication. (more…)

The US food supply is among the safest in the world. But, even so:

• Each year, 70 million Americans are sickened, 300,000 are hospitalized and 5,000 die after consuming contaminated foods and beverages.
• More than 56 percent of domestic food manufacturers have gone five or more years without a federal inspection, and regulators can inspect only a small fraction of the foreign firms that ship food to the U.S.
• In a report on food traceability, researchers found that only 5 of 40 selected products could be traced through each stage of the food supply chain.

(See this earlier post for even more statistics.)

It’s time to update our national food safety laws, and that’s why I applaud Congress for passing the Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) earlier this month. This legislation represents the first major changes to food safety laws in 70 years, and as such, it will have an impact on virtually all aspects of the food supply chain. The bill allows for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to order mandatory food recalls and requires food facilities to put sorely-needed food safety plans in place.

But, the legislation is far from a fete de complete. The Los Angeles Times reports that this historic effort “may run into trouble next year over an old problem –money.” (more…)

Supply chain traceability is becoming increasingly important –particularly for companies in the food and beverage sector and their customers.

In fact, more than three quarters (76 percent) of food service professionals recently polled by Voxware said that traceability is a priority for their companies.

The voice of the consumer appears to be getting louder. Nearly a third (31 percent) said their customers ask either frequently or urgently about plans on compliance, and more than half (52 percent) said their customers are asking about traceability occasionally. In addition, nearly three-fourths of respondents (72 percent) said they are either somewhat likely or very likely to adopt some traceability standards in the near future.

But for businesses, the expense of implementing traceability processes remains a significant challenge. (more…)

A new three-way partnership between DHL Global Forwarding, Interstate Transport, Inc., and Trans World Forwarding Inc. (TWF) will reportedly guarantee a complete perishable supply chain solution starting from point of origin in Central and South America to the final delivery locations across North America.

This unique collaboration will provide controlled temperature trucking for perishables coming in by air or ocean for all kinds of commodities such as cut flowers, produce and fresh seafood – all on one bill – from one freight provider.

TWF will act as DHL Global Forwarding’s preferred provider in charge of receiving cargo from the airport and seaport and then handling and processing the shipment until it is ready to be transported as per the customer’s need. Some of the services that TWF will provide include: customs clearance, inspections, storage, consolidations, pallet breakdown, cross-docking and direct delivery to importers in the Miami area.
(more…)