A new poultry inspection rule is making its way through the federal government that would give industry more responsibility over visual examination of carcasses, but allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture to focus on testing for food-borne illnesses.
The USDA says the existing system, which has been in place since the 1950s, is outdated and doesn't reflect a modern understanding of disease. Those who oppose the new rule say it gives industry too much power in the inspection process.
As it stands, USDA inspectors focus on the visual inspection of carcasses, looking for bumps and feathers, and sort the carcasses.
The rule change would shift the focus of USDA personnel to testing for unseen threats, like salmonella. Industry personnel would sort carcasses instead of inspectors, though a USDA carcass inspector would still give the final OK. Another inspector would take samples and ensure compliance with written plant procedures.
The rule would allow line speeds to increase from 140 birds per minute to 175, but would require microbiological testing at two points in the production process.
The USDA estimates the rule change would prevent 5,200 illnesses a year, save the agency $90 million over three years and lower production costs by $256 million a year, according to a press release. A USDA spokesman declined to comment.
Some members of Congress and consumer groups have opposed the rule change.
"While we strongly support modernizing our food safety system and making it more efficient, modernization should not occur at the expense of public health, worker safety, or animal welfare," said 68 members of Congress in a letter to Tom Vilsack, secretary of agriculture. "We therefore harbor serious concerns over what we believe are the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS)'s inadequate considerations to date of these issues in promulgating this rule." No one in the Arkansas delegation signed the letter.
The Center for Foodborne Illness Research and Prevention also has opposed the new rule.
"The proposed rule is rooted in a risk assessment that did not take into account two key risk management changes, namely increased line speeds and the removal of some inspection resources from establishments," said Barbara Kowalcyk, center CEO and director of research, and Patricia Buck, center director of outreach and education, in a letter to Vilsack. "We are concerned that adding these two key risk management changes will tip the scales and result in an increased risk of illness."
The Poultry Federation, which operates in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, and the National Chicken Council released statements that lend support to the rule change.
"I commend USDA for taking the next step in an effort to modernize the way the agency inspects chicken," said Mike Brown, president of the National Chicken Council, in a statement. "In an effort to continue our progress towards reducing food-borne illnesses, we believe, along with food safety experts, that the poultry inspection system should be modernized and transitioned to a model that is more science and risk-based."
The council launched a website in support of the draft rule that featured University of Arkansas at Fayetteville professors John Marcy and Billy Hargis.
"The inspectors that are going to be there are going to be charged with oversight, to make sure that the quality is high, and allowing time for improved microbiological testing and safety improvements," said Billy Hargis, director of the Poultry Health Lab at the University of Arkansas, in a video testimonial on the website.
The USDA sent the draft final rule to the Office of Management and Budget on Thursday, which now has 90 days to review it.
Business on 07/12/2014