In the four and a half years since Food Safety Modernization Act was signed into law, "How" the FDA plans to fund the project has been the big question.
In the four and a half years since Food Safety Modernization Act was signed into law, "How" the FDA plans to fund the project has been the big question.
Now We Have the Answer
For some time now, terms like "After routine inspections at a Kroger outlet...." or "This voluntary recall is the result of a routine sampling program conducted by the FDA in the retail marketplace..." are becoming more and more common in the news.
Regulating on a Budget
The FDA does not have the money to send inspectors out to all of the players in the food industry but they do have the funds to send staff out grocery shopping. Here's how it works. The FDA has food segments on their target list. They send staff out to the supermarket with a grocery list, the staff buys product on retail shelves and the FDA sends it to a lab for testing.
If they get a positive for a pathogen...WHAM! RECALL! The FDA requires the company to remove the product in question from retail stores. This then prompts the process of investigating the company's food safety protocol. The company and its product are now on FDA's radar for future monitoring.
Who the Targets Are
Any company that manufactures food and sells it through retail distribution is a target. And once a company’s product comes up positive for pathogens, the FDA concentrates their focus on that particular product category. Now that particular category is “the flavor of the month”. When one particular ice cream manufacturer gets hit with a recall, expect recalls of ice cream to continue for a while.
This practice is not going away it has been in place for years in other industries that the FDA regulates. Using the grocery list method to target the food business just makes sense.
Fortune Favors the Prepared
The days of flying under the radar are over. Businesses must step up their game when it comes to monitoring their food safety protocol and tracing the ingredients that come into and go out of their facility. Companies have from one to three years to comply with FSMA. That's not a lot of time from a business prospective. Successful implementation takes time so starting the process earlier rather than later will allow for a smooth transition into the new landscape of food safety rules and regulations.
