[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 61 (Monday, March 31, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15154-15155]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-7996]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 97-002N]
Solicitations for Bids on Proposals Relating to FSIS's Farm to
Table Strategy
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has announced in
the Commerce Business Daily a series of solicitations for bids
concerning animal production practices as they relate to food safety.
Four of these solicitations consist of demonstrating voluntarily
implemented pre-slaughter practices that reduce contaminants in or on
food animals presented for slaughter and enhance the ability of
slaughter establishments to meet pathogen reduction performance
standards and institute sound risk-based HACCP plans for incoming
animals. The interest areas are pork, poultry, non-fed beef and sheep.
A fifth project is to learn what training methodologies have been
effective in improving food animal production safety practices. A sixth
project is to support a survey of small producers to determine producer
needs as slaughter establishments develop pathogen reduction HACCP
systems.
ADDRESSES: Solicitation packages may be requested from Julie Adams,
Head, Acquisition Agreements Section, Room 2161, South Agriculture
Building, FSIS, USDA, Washington, DC 20250; FAX (202) 690-1814.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Refer to the Commerce Business Daily,
dated 2/27/97, page 4.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In the final rule, ``Pathogen Reduction; Hazard Analysis and
Critical Control Point (HACCP) Systems'' (61 FR 38806), published on
July 25, 1996, FSIS discussed its farm-to-table food safety strategy
(61 FR 38810). This strategy focuses on the control of food safety
hazards throughout the continuum of animal production, slaughter and
processing, distribution, and sale of meat and poultry products. FSIS
has historically focused on the manufacturing of meat and poultry
products through its inspection program; however, the Agency's public
health mandate requires that it also consider the pre- and post-
processing hazards as part of a comprehensive strategy to prevent
foodborne illness.
The farm-to-table food safety strategy is founded on three
principles:
Hazards that could result in foodborne illness arise at
each stage of the farm-to-table continuum: animal production and
slaughter, and the processing, transportation, storage, and retail,
restaurant, or food service sale of meat and poultry products. Each
stage presents hazards of pathogen and other contamination and each
provides opportunities for minimizing the effect of those hazards.
Those in control of each segment of the farm-to-table
continuum bear responsibility for identifying and preventing or
reducing food safety hazards that are under their operational control.
[[Page 15155]]
The Agency's public health mandate requires that it
address foodborne illness hazards within each segment of the food
production chain and implement or encourage preventive strategies that
improve the whole system.
As part of this farm-to-table strategy, FSIS is interested in
supporting a series of pilot demonstration projects which may assist
food animal producers, markets, the slaughter and processing industry,
and the Agency in meeting food safety challenges in a preventive HACCP
framework. These projects are intended to develop and foster voluntary
food safety measures that can reasonably be taken on the farm, through
marketing channels, and during preslaughter preparation to decrease
public health hazards in animals presented for slaughter.
Therefore, the Agency has announced in the Commerce Business Daily
a series of solicitations for bid on proposals to gain information
concerning animal production practices as they pertain to food safety.
Briefly, these solicitations are as follows:
Proposals 1-4--Pathogen Reduction in Four Species
FSIS is interested in funding pilot projects that use risk
assessment strategies to demonstrate the application, feasibility, and
effectiveness of current technologies for controlling contaminants and
that emphasize pre-slaughter pathogen reduction. Multi-disciplinary
teams in multiple geographical locations are required. Projects must
demonstrate multi-geographical and multi-seasonal applicability.
There are four project/species areas of interest: pork, poultry,
non-fed beef, and sheep. For poultry, there is information available on
intervention methods used to reduce pathogens in/on poultry during
production and transportation to slaughter. A possible approach would
be to demonstrate whether or not multi-faceted (two or more) risk
reduction practices carried out pre-slaughter could reliably reduce
carcass contamination. With regard to pork, non-fed beef, and sheep,
the Agency is interested in learning the relationship of current
production practices to the incidence of pathogens in slaughter
facilities. Using animal identification techniques to improve
information-sharing between production and slaughter/processing
entities is required for non-fed beef and encouraged for pork and
sheep.
Proposal 5--Training for Food Animal Producers
FSIS is also interested in learning which training methodologies
will work best to maximize the effectiveness of future food safety
initiatives directed at food animal producers, particularly small
producers. The purpose of these programs is to improve the ability of
food animal producers to maintain sustainable operations as they
address requirements of slaughter establishments implementing
preventive HACCP systems and other food safety responsibilities.
Proposal 6--Survey of Small Producer HACCP Needs
FSIS is interested in supporting a survey of small producers and
small and very small slaughter establishments. The purpose of the
survey is to determine the needs of producers who supply slaughter
establishments as these establishments consider developing pathogen
reduction and HACCP systems. Proposals should address multiple
geographic locations with a focus on disadvantaged areas and various
slaughter classes. The evaluation must include access to and use of
veterinary services, knowledge and implementation of commodity food
safety/quality assurance programs, and recordkeeping practices for
animal drug use.
Done at Washington, DC, on March 24, 1997.
Thomas J. Billy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 97-7996 Filed 3-28-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DR-P
