USDA STRENGTHENS ZERO TOLERANCE RULE ON POULTRY
Release No. 0027.97
Johna Pierce (202) 720-4623
Steve
Lombardi (202) 720-9113
USDA STRENGTHENS ZERO TOLERANCE RULE ON POULTRY
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 1997--U. S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman today announced a final regulation to clarify and strengthen USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service's zero tolerance policy on visible fecal matter on poultry carcasses. The regulation complements the new meat and poultry inspection system established last summer and will further reduce food-borne illnesses.
Today's action once again demonstrates the Clinton Administration's commitment to improving food safety by stepping up FSIS' enforcement of USDA's zero tolerance policy.
This final rule is one component of the proposed Enhanced Poultry Inspection Program, published as a proposed rule in October of 1994. The Pathogen Reduction/HACCP -- or Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point -final rule issued in July, 1996 superceded most aspects of the proposed enhanced poultry inspection program. This final rule codifies FSIS existing zero tolerance policy on visible fecal contamination of poultry, specifying that poultry carcasses contaminated with feces are not allowed to enter chilling tanks, where contamination could spread to other carcasses. The rule also eliminates a portion of FSIS regulations which, on their face, appeared to be inconsistent with the zero tolerance policy.
"We are reinforcing our policy that contamination is unacceptable," FSIS Administrator Tom Billy said. Billy also noted that FSIS has consistently enforced a zero tolerance policy for meat and poultry products.
The final rule is scheduled to be published in the February 4, 1997 Federal Register. The rule becomes effective 90 days after publication.
#
NOTE: USDA news releases and media advisories are available on the Internet. Access the USDA Home Page on the World Wide Web at http://www.usda.gov
January 1997
Food Safety Education and
Communications Staff
(202) 720-7943; FAX: (202) 720-1843
FSIS Clarifies and Strengthens Enforcement of Zero Tolerance Standard for Visible Fecal Contamination of Poultry
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) inspects meat, poultry, and egg products to ensure they are safe, wholesome, and accurately labeled. FSIS is amending its regulations to clarify and strengthen enforcement of its zero-tolerance policy regarding visible fecal material on poultry carcasses. The final rule formalizes what has been a long-standing policy of the Agency. The zero tolerance policy for visible fecal contamination is an important food safety standard because fecal contamination is a major vehicle for spreading disease-causing microorganisms, such as Salmonella, to raw poultry.
FSIS expects that the final rule, together with other food safety initiatives--most notably the Pathogen Reduction/Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulations--will help to improve the safety of raw poultry products and bring about declines in foodborne illness attributable to poultry consumption. Because the zero fecal tolerance for poultry parallels an already existing zero fecal tolerance for meat, the rule also improves consistency between the regulations governing meat and poultry products. Other activities FSIS has undertaken to improve consistency include permitting steam pasteurization as an alternative to knife trimming for beef.
The rule is scheduled to be published in the February 4 Federal Register, and takes effect 90 days after the publication date.
On July 13, 1994, FSIS issued a proposed rule on Enhanced Poultry Inspection. In addition to clarifying the Agency's zero-tolerance policy for visible fecal contamination, the proposed rule included a number of other features. During the rulemaking process, FSIS continued to look for ways to improve the inspection process and better protect consumers.
On February 3, 1995, FSIS published a proposed rule on Pathogen Reduction/HACCP, which re-proposed revising the poultry finished product standards to eliminate feces as a defect category.
On July 25, 1996, FSIS published a final rule on Pathogen Reduction/HACCP, which established a new and comprehensive framework for food safety protection, and superseded the provisions of the Enhanced Poultry Inspection proposed rule. However, FSIS has determined that the zero fecal tolerance provision of the Enhanced Poultry Inspection proposal is still pertinent and would complement the Pathogen Reduction/HACCP regulations. Therefore, FSIS is finalizing the zero fecal tolerance provision of the Enhanced Poultry Inspection proposal.
The Pathogen Reduction/HACCP regulations require each meat and poultry establishment to conduct a hazard analysis, and to develop a HACCP plan for each product produced. Because fecal contamination is a reliable indicator of the likely presence of microbial pathogens, it is a food safety hazard that all slaughter plants will necessarily address in their HACCP plans. Poultry establishments would then be required to design and adopt controls that are effective in preventing contaminated carcasses from entering the chilling tanks. They must also monitor, verify, and record results that demonstrate the effective operation of those controls. Slaughter establishments must also, based on a provision of the final HACCP rule that went into effect on January 27, 1997, verify their process controls by testing sampled carcasses for generic E.coli, common bacteria often associated with fecal contamination. And slaughter establishments and establishments producing raw ground products must meet performance standards for Salmonella to verify their HACCP systems are effective in reducing and controlling contamination with that pathogenic organism.
The final rule codifies the Agency's policy of zero tolerance for visible fecal contamination on poultry carcasses. Under current inspection rules, FSIS requires the removal of all visible fecal contamination, by trimming or washing the carcass, either on or off the processing line. These carcasses are then subject to reinspection and must meet finished product standards applied by plant employees and verified by FSIS inspectors before the carcasses enter the chiller. In order to clarify enforcement of this policy, the final rule removes the category for "feces" from the list of defects in the poultry finished product standards. This means that no fecal contamination is allowed. While the zero tolerance policy has always been enforced, this rule clarifies--and strengthens--that requirement.
FSIS will continue to verify that establishments are meeting the zero-tolerance standard through observation, checking quality control data, and product sampling. Any indication of visible fecal contamination will require establishments to take immediate corrective action, rather than waiting until a certain statistical measure of control is exceeded over a period of time.
During each shift, FSIS inspectors will check at least two additional 10-bird samples on each evisceration line for visible fecal contamination after the final wash but before the carcasses enter the chiller.
FSIS will also continue to verify the effectiveness of the establishment's corrective actions. If the actions prove ineffective, FSIS will prohibit the birds on the affected lines from entering the chilling tank directly until the establishment demonstrates, and FSIS verifies, that the zero-tolerance standard is being met. The contaminated birds will be reprocessed or condemned.
After HACCP systems are implemented in slaughter establishments, FSIS inspectors will determine the effectiveness of preventive controls for fecal contamination and proposed corrective actions as they verify the adequacy of the plant's HACCP system.
The presence of visible fecal contamination on poultry carcasses about to enter the chiller will mean that controls to prevent such contamination have failed, requiring immediate corrective action as described in the plant's HACCP plan. Contamination even after corrective actions have been taken would indicate a HACCP system failure, triggering a regulatory response.
FSIS plans to review the application of this standard during the implementation of HACCP in affected establishments and welcomes input on this issue.
In addition, USDA is seeking comments and information on the relationship of ingesta contamination to the presence of microbial pathogens on raw poultry. Ingesta contamination can be caused by contact with the undigested feed contents of the animal's crop, esophagus, and gizzard.
Prior to the chiller, establishments are permitted to remove fecal contamination by a number of approved methods. The approved methods for removing fecal contamination from poultry are different from those approved for meat because of inherent differences in the type of animals being processed.
Washing has been allowed for poultry since 1978 as an alternative to knife trimming because studies have shown it is equally effective in removing fecal contamination. Washing is not allowed for beef because it has not been shown to be equivalent. However, steam vacuuming has been permitted for beef since 1996 because it has been shown to be equivalent to trimming in removing fecal contamination and associated bacteria.
Further research may reveal other, more effective methods for removing fecal contamination from all species of meat and poultry. USDA encourages and supports continued research to introduce new technologies, provided they are scientifically validated to assure that specific microbiological hazards are effectively controlled. However, FSIS continues to encourage companies to prevent contamination, rather than rely on after-the-fact efforts to correct problems.
Technical Inquiries:
Isabel Arrington, Slaughter Operations Staff, (202) 720-7905
Media Inquiries: (202) 720-9113
Congressional Inquiries: (202) 720-3897
Constituent Inquiries: (202) 770-8594
Consumer Inquiries: Call USDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-800-535-4555. (Or, in the Washington, DC,
area, call (202) 720-3333.)
FSIS FastFax: (202) 690-3754 or 1-800-238-8281
FSIS HomePage: http://www.usda.gov/fsis