"Current Thinking Papers on National Standards for Egg Safety"
Holiday Inn on the Hill
New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC
July 31, 2000
Morning Session | ||
8:00am | Registration | |
8:30am | Meeting Format and Administration | Louis Carson, FDA |
8:45am | Welcome | Catherine E. Woteki, USDA
Joseph Levitt, FDA |
9:00am | Meeting Chairs | Joseph Levitt, FDA
Margaret Glavin, FSIS |
9:10am | On-Farm Production - Current Thinking | Rebecca Buckner, FDA |
9:30am | Shell Egg Packer - Current Thinking | Alice Thaler, FSIS |
Egg Products Processing - Current Thinking | Victoria Levine, FSIS | |
10:00am | Egg Products Baseline Project | Martha Workman, FSIS |
10:10am | Retail - Current Thinking | Nancy Bufano, FDA |
10:30-11:00am | Break | |
11:00am | Open Discussion | |
12:00-1:00pm | Lunch | |
Afternoon Session | ||
1:00pm | Registered Speakers | |
3:00pm | Closing Remarks | Joseph Levitt, FDA
Margaret Glavin, FSIS |
3:30pm | Adjourn |
FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
ON-FARM STANDARDS
FOR REDUCING SALMONELLA ENTERITIDIS IN SHELL EGGS
The President's Council on Food Safety has identified egg safety as one component of the nation's food safety program that warrants immediate federal, interagency action. The Council developed an Egg Safety Action Plan to address the presence of Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) in shell eggs and egg products using a farm-to-table approach. The Action Plan offers industry the flexibility to choose from two SE reduction strategies, each equivalent to meet the Action Plan's interim goal of a 50% reduction in egg-associated SE illnesses by 2005. Risk reduction in Strategy I is based on measures designed to reduce SE contamination of eggs during production, while risk reduction in Strategy II is based on measures designed to eliminate SE from contaminated eggs at the processor. In addition, the Action Plan has retail and education objectives to reduce the risk of SE illnesses. Proposed rules for egg safety standards are scheduled to be published in 2000, followed by publication of final rules in 2001 and implementation of the standards in 2002-2003. The proposed rules will be informed by estimates of the benefits and costs of regulatory options. FDA expects its proposed rule to be economically significant.
On March 30, 2000, and April 6, 2000, FDA and FSIS held public meetings in Columbus, OH, and Sacramento, CA, respectively, to solicit and discuss information related to the implementation of the Egg Safety Action Plan and to gather information for reducing or eliminating the risk of SE in eggs. In an effort to expand the public process and build upon the two public meetings, FDA and FSIS are sharing their current thinking on the integral features of the farm-to-table egg safety standards to reduce egg-associated SE illnesses. Draft current thinking documents (on-farm, packer/processor, and retail) are available for your review, public discussion and comment at a public meeting July 31, 2000, at the Holiday Inn on the Hill in Washington, D.C. These documents represent current thinking and are not the agencies' final position. The agencies are sharing these current thinking documents with the public to receive input from interested stakeholders.
On-Farm Standards
Coverage
SE Risk Reduction Plan
Components may include:
Verification of the SE Risk Reduction Plan
Environmental Testing: | 40-45 weeks of age + 25 weeks after end of each molting period (i.e., same time period as initial environmental test) | ||||||||||||
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Administration of the SE Risk Reduction Plan
One individual at each production facility must successfully complete training on SE risk reduction measures for egg production. That individual is responsible for administering the SE risk reduction plan.
Recordkeeping Requirements
Producers will maintain a written SE risk reduction plan and records indicating compliance with all components of the plan.
FOOD SAFETY AND INSPECTION SERVICE
STANDARDS FOR SHELL EGG PACKERS AND
EGG PRODUCTS PROCESSING ESTABLISHMENTS
FSIS's overall approach to regulating shell egg packers and processed egg product plants is to eliminate, modify, and add requirements to the egg and egg products inspection regulations that will make the regulations consistent with the Agency’s regulatory approach to meat and poultry products under 9 CFR Part 416, Sanitation, and Part 417, HACCP. An economic analysis is being developed around the options under consideration and the feasibility of implementing these requirements will be examined as part of the analysis.
Shell Egg Packer and Egg Products Processor Standards
Requirements for shell egg packers and egg products processors may include:
I. Coverage
Sanitation SOPs, Hazard Analysis and HACCP Plan
Prohibition on repacking for retail sale
Shell eggs that have previously been shipped for retail sale
General operating procedures to be written as a performance standards
May include performance standards for shell egg handling, storing, cooling, and performance standards for lethality requirements for processed egg products and pasteurized shell eggs
Records and related requirements
Will not be duplicative across regulatory authorities, for example, producer-packers may combine a SE Risk Reduction Plan (FDA) with the HACCP plan (FSIS)
Includes information that accounts for the movement of eggs, including restricted eggs, through the food chain, documents HACCP and SSOP program compliance with performance standards, and documents labeling, product formulation and processing procedures
II. Coverage
Registration of Shell Egg Handlers
III. Coverage
Exemptions from the temperature and labeling requirements
FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
RETAIL STANDARDS (USING 1999 FOOD CODE PROVISIONS)
Retail Establishments
Raw eggs:
Egg products:
Serve At-risk Consumers
Substitute treated eggs or pasteurized egg products for raw eggs in food items that:
Serve the General Public
Hypertext updated by ear 2000-AUG-04