[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 113 (Thursday, June 12, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 32053-32054]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-15333]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
9 CFR Parts 304, 308, 310, 320, 327, 381, 416, and 417
[Docket No. 97-025N]
Generic HACCP Models and Guidance Materials Available for Review
and Comment
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has developed 13
generic Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) models and
has revised its Guidebook for the Preparation of HACCP Plans and its
Hazards and Controls Guide for Meat and Poultry Products to assist meat
and poultry establishments in the development of their HACCP systems.
The models, Guidebook, and Guide will be available for review and study
by interested members of the public. FSIS is soliciting public comments
on the models and other guidance materials to determine their
appropriateness and useability, especially by owners of ``small'' and
``very small'' establishments.
DATES: Written comments on the models, Guidebook, and Guide must be
submitted on or before August 11, 1997.
ADDRESSES: The models, Guidebook, and Guide may be viewed in the FSIS
Docket Reading Room, Room 102 Cotton Annex Building, 300 12th Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700 and at Government Depository Libraries
throughout the country. Comments on the models and other documents
should be directed to Ms. Diane Moore, FSIS Docket Clerk, at the above
address. Paper copies of the complete set of materials are available
from the Public Outreach Office, Room 1180, South Agriculture Building,
1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700. To obtain a
paper copy of the Guidebook, Guide, and appropriate model(s), please
mail your request indicating the number and title of the document to
the Public Outreach Office at the above address; or FAX to (202) 720-
9063.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Patricia F. Stolfa, Assistant
Deputy Administrator, Regulations & Inspection, in the Office of
Policy, Program Development and Evaluation, Food Safety and Inspection
Service, at (202) 205-0699, FAX (202) 401-1760.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 25, 1996, FSIS published a final
rule, ``Pathogen Reduction; Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point
(HACCP) Systems'' (61 FR 38806). This rule introduces sweeping changes
to the meat and poultry inspection system and directly targets
pathogenic organisms on those products that can cause foodborne
illness. In the preamble to the proposed rule, FSIS announced that it
would develop 13 generic HACCP models to facilitate preparation of
mandated HACCP plans, especially by ``small'' and ``very small''
establishments, and to reduce costs associated with developing HACCP
plans. FSIS said that the models would be available in draft form for
public comment, and in final form at least six months before HACCP
implementation. HACCP will be implemented in ``small'' and ``very
small'' plants in the years 1999 and 2000 respectively.
The following generic HACCP models and guidance materials are
available: HACCP-1, Guidebook for the Preparation of HACCP Plans;
HACCP-2, Meat and Poultry Products Hazards and Control Guide; HACCP-3,
Generic
[[Page 32054]]
HACCP Model for Raw, Ground Meat and Poultry Products; HACCP-4, Generic
HACCP Model for Raw, Not Ground Meat and Poultry Products;
HACCP-5, Generic HACCP Model for Poultry Slaughter; HACCP-6, Generic
HACCP Model for Mechanically Separated (Species)/Mechanically Deboned
Poultry; HACCP-7, Generic HACCP Model for Thermally Processed
Commercially Sterile Meat and Poultry Products;
HACCP-8, Generic HACCP Model for Irradiation; HACCP-9, Generic HACCP
Model for Meat and Poultry Products with Secondary Inhibitors, Not
Shelf-Stable; HACCP-10, Generic HACCP Model for Heat Treated, Shelf-
Stable Meat and Poultry Products; HACCP-11, Generic HACCP Model for Not
Shelf-Stable Heat Treated, Not Fully Cooked Meat and Poultry Products;
HACCP-12, Generic HACCP Model for Fully Cooked, Not Shelf-Stable Meat
and Poultry Products; HACCP-13, Generic HACCP Model for Beef Slaughter;
HACCP-14, Generic HACCP Model for Pork Slaughter; and HACCP-15, Generic
HACCP Model for Not Heat Treated, Shelf-Stable Meat and Poultry
Products.
Ten of the models were developed by the International Meat and
Poultry HACCP Alliance, a consortium of academics, industry, and
consumer group representatives, on a contractual basis with FSIS. The
remaining three models were developed in-house at FSIS in consultation
with representatives from other Federal agencies, academia, and
industry, who peer reviewed the models. The previously published
Guidebook and Guide have been revised and are being reissued for public
comment with the HACCP models.
Since each HACCP system should be developed by an individual
establishment for its specific processes and practices, the generic
models are meant to serve as illustrations and were developed as
conceptual, informational models. They are not intended and should not
serve as blueprints for a specific plant's HACCP plan. Interested
persons are invited to evaluate the materials in the 13 generic HACCP
models and comment on their use and adaptability, especially by
``small'' and ``very small'' establishments in developing their own
plant-specific HACCP plans. Comments are invited on: (a) whether the
materials clearly are appropriate as generic models and not blueprints;
(b) whether the language conveys unequivocally throughout the document
that these are models; (c) whether the models are ``user friendly'' to
the extent that they will guide plant owners in developing their own
plans at reduced costs; and (d) whether the methodology and the
technical assumptions used in the models have validity and utility as
guidelines for plant owners. In addition, FSIS is interested in
comments on the preferred format for publication of these guidance
materials.
Done at Washington, DC, on: June 4, 1997.
Thomas J. Billy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 97-15333 Filed 6-11-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P
