FDA Revises Key
Provisions of
Proposed FSMA Affecting
Farmers
The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) announced TODAY that they will propose revised rule
language and open another comment period on two Food Safety Modernization Act
(FSMA) rules, Produce Safety and Preventive Controls for Human Food. FDA anticipates
rule language to be published by early summer 2014 to be followed by a public
comment period.
The changes encompass key
provisions associated with water quality standards and testing, standards for
using raw manure and compost, certain requirements affecting mixed-used
facilities, and procedures for withdrawing the qualified exemption for certain
farms. Additional revisions may follow FDA’s initial review of the over 25,000
comments received on these two proposed food safety rules.
“Vermont Agency of
Agriculture, Food, and Markets (VAAFM) is a strong advocate of food safety for
both consumers and producers. It’s absolutely critical that the rules are
written right to begin with.” said Secretary Chuck Ross. “We will closely
examine the revised proposed rules from FDA to ensure that this second round
best fits the community-based, diversified agriculture that is so essential to
Vermont and New England.”
FSMA remains the most
sweeping reform of our nation’s food safety laws in more than 70 years and was
signed into law by President Obama on January 4, 2011. FSMA aims to ensure the
U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination
to preventing it.
The Standards for the
Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce rule, published
January 2013, proposes enforceable safety standards for the production and
harvesting of produce on farms.
The Current Good
Manufacturing Practices and Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls
for Human Food rule, published January 2013, would require makers of food
to be sold in the United States, whether produced at a foreign- or
domestic-based facility, to develop a formal plan for preventing food products
from causing foodborne illness.
Labels: farmers. proposed, FDA, FSMA, language