June 4, 2008

US meat processor body urges FSIS to adopt test-and-hold rule

 
The American Meat Institute (AMI) today told USDA that it would support an agency policy that would require companies to control meat products tested by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) until the test results are known.

In a letter to Under Secretary for Food Safety Richard Raymond, M.D., AMI said it would support an agency policy that product tested by FSIS, not to be sold until the test results become available.

AMI said that such a policy should not consist of agency retention of any FSIS tested product, but encourage a company to utilize its own, effective control measures that ensure the product is not used or distributed for sale before the test results are known.

AMI said in its news release that many recalls that occurred in 2007 could have been prevented if product tested by FSIS had not been used or did not enter commerce until negative test results were available.

For E. coli, 26 of the 49 recalls in 2007 occurred when product tested positive after it left the control of the producing company and entered commerce. For listeria monocytogenes related recalls in 2007, almost all of the nine recalls occurred because test results were positive, but the producing company did not retain control

AMI said it has long advocated that companies retain control of sampled product to avoid a recall in the event the test result is positive. In 2005 AMI, along with several other organizations, has made efforts to encourage every federally inspected establishment to adopt a policy to control tested product until the results are known. Still, some plants have not adhered to this practice, AMI said.

AMI is a national trade association that represents companies that process 95 percent of red meat and 70 percent of turkey in the US and their suppliers throughout America.