Category: Department of Agriculture
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FSIS Issues Notice on Final Rule Regarding Misbranded Meat, Poultry
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued a notice requiring inspectors to make establishments aware of how to comply with a May 8, 2012, final rule on misbranded meat and poultry. The rule requires establishments to prepare and maintain recall procedures, notify FSIS within 24 hours when adulterated or…
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Animal Rights Groups Claim Foie Gras Sales Violate Federal Poultry Law
A coalition of animal rights organizations has reportedly filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in federal court, alleging that the agency has violated the Poultry Products Inspection Act by allowing foie gras to be sold to consumers. Animal Legal Defense Fund v. USDA, No. __ (C.D. Cal., filed May 9, 2012).…
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FSIS Targets Traceback Measures, Food Preservatives, Misbranded Products, HACCP Plans
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has proposed new traceback measures to better control and prevent pathogens from triggering foodborne illnesses and outbreaks. Particularly concerned with meat contaminated with Escherichia coli (E. coli), FSIS plans to “move quickly to identify the supplier of the product and any processors who received contaminated…
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California Senator Requests Federal “Meat Glue” Investigation
California Senator Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) has sent a May 3, 2012, letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service, asking the agency to investigate the restaurant industry’s use of transglutaminase or “meat glue” to allegedly bind together “disparate parts of meat products to form a larger piece of meat.” Citing…
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USDA Confirms New BSE Case in Dairy Cow
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a statement confirming that its Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service identified a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a dairy cow from central California. According to the April 24, 2012, news release, the cow presented with an atypical type of BSE “not generally associated with…
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Animal Welfare Groups Pull Reins on Proposed Horse Slaughterhouse
A New Mexico rancher has reportedly petitioned the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to operate the first horse slaughterhouse since the ban for such operations was lifted in November 2011. Since 2006, the federal government has essentially blocked horse slaughterhouses because Congress did not fund their legally required USDA inspections. Those inspections, however, were approved…
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USDA Extends Quality Monitoring Program to Olive Oil
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced the expansion of its Quality Monitoring Program to include extra virgin and organic extra virgin olive oil. According to an April 3, 2012, post on the USDA blog, the program hopes to address questions raised in the last few years about olive oil quality and provide consumers…
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USDA Proposes Updated Bovine Import Regulations to Open Trade Barriers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has issued a 66-page proposed rule that would update import rules for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The topic was discussed in Issue 427 of this Update. Current U.S. trade rules prohibit beef imports from countries that have outbreaks or high risks of…