Tag: food safety/FSMA
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FDA Announces First Regulations Under Food Safety Modernization Act
FDA has issued the first two new regulations under the Food Safety Modernization Act. Effective July 3, 2011, the interim final rules are designed to strengthen FDA’s ability to help prevent potentially unsafe food from reaching U.S. consumers. The first rule amends FDA regulations concerning the detention of food for human or animal consumption. It…
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FDA Meeting to Discuss FSMA Preventive Controls for Facilities
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced an April 20, 2011, public meeting to discuss a Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) mandate to implement “comprehensive, science-based preventive controls across the food supply.” FSMA requires human, pet and animal food and feed facilities registered under section 415 of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21…
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FDA Launches Recall Search Engine
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has launched a new “consumer-friendly” web portal detailing the latest recalls, market withdrawals and safety alerts for food and other products regulated by FDA. According to an April 4, 2011, press release, the new searchable database organizes all recall information since 2009 “by date, product brand name, product description,…
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FDA Meetings to Target Imported Food Safety
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced its first public meeting to discuss implementation of import safety provisions recently enacted by the Food Safety Modernization Act. Titled “FDA Food Safety Modernization Act: Title III—A New Paradigm for Importers,” the March 29, 2011, meeting in Silver Spring, Maryland, seeks stakeholder input to develop regulations and guidance…
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CDC Researchers Call for Rapid Tracing of Food Source Contamination
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researchers have called for rapid tracing of food source contamination to reduce illness and save lives. Casey Barton Behravesh, et al., “2008 Outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul Infections Associated with Raw Produce,” New England Journal of Medicine, February 2011. Investigating the 2008 Salmonella outbreak first blamed on American tomatoes…
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GAO Report Targets Food Safety Overlap
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a March 2011 report identifying 34 areas, including agriculture, “where agencies, offices, or initiatives have similar or overlapping objectives or provide similar services to the same populations; or where government missions are fragmented across multiple agencies.” Commissioned by Congress, this first annual report also summarizes 47 areas where lawmakers…
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Leahy Proposal Would Increase Penalties for Food Safety Violations
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has renewed his quest to increase the sentences prosecutors can seek to impose on those who knowingly sell tainted food products. He has reintroduced the Food Safety Accountability Act (S. 216) and promises to schedule hearings in the near future before the Judiciary Committee, which he chairs. While the proposal passed…