IMS List
Sanitation Compliance and Enforcement Ratings
of Interstate Milk Shippers

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Table of Contents

• IMS Lists (PDF for printing)
• Subscribe/Unsubscribe to IMSL-L
• Rules For Inclusion In The IMS
• National Uniform Coding System For Packaging Identification Of Milk And Milk Product Processing
• Sanitation Compliance And Enforcement Ratings Of Interstate Milk Shippers - Domestic
• Sanitation Compliance And Enforcement Ratings Of Interstate Milk Shippers - Foreign
  • Product Codes
• Abbreviations
• Certified Manufacturers Of Single-Service Containers And Closures And Related Products For Milk and Milk Products - Domestic
  • Explanation of Product and Material Codes
• Certified Manufacturers Of Single-Service Containers And Closures And Related Products for Milk and Milk Products - Foreign
• Milk Laboratories Approved By Federal And State Agencies
  • Lab Procedures, Codes, Lab Number Codes And Lab Classification
• Milk Laboratory Supervisors
• PHS/FDA Milk Specialists
• FDA CFSAN Personnel
• State Grade A Milk Regulatory, Rating and Laboratory Personnel
  • Definitions
• International Certification Pilot Program Third Party Certifiers
• Single-Service Consultants for Foreign Single-Service Manufacturer Certification
• Coded Memoranda (Milk Safety References)

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Sanitation Compliance And Enforcement Ratings Of Interstate Milk Shippers - Domestic
(Dynamic --May be updated daily when new data is available)

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Sanitation Compliance And Enforcement Ratings Of Interstate Milk Shippers - Foreign
(Dynamic --May be updated daily when new data is available)

Certified Manufacturers Of Single-Service Containers and Closures And Related Products
(Dynamic --May be updated daily when new data is available)

Milk Laboratories Approved By Federal And State Agencies
(Dynamic --May be updated daily when new data is available)

Milk Laboratory Supervisors
(Dynamic --May be updated daily when new data is available)

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This IMS list is provided as an on-line guide to assist regulatory program management and others who utilize the IMS list to stay current by providing continuous updates. The IMS list is also posted on FDA's Website as a Portable Document Format (PDF) file quarterly by the FDA Milk Safety Team.

"IMS LIST SANITATION COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT RATINGS OF INTERSTATE MILK SHIPPERS" is published quarterly in PDF format and available at http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~ear/ims-toc.html for downloading and printing.

Announcement on Formats Available for the Interstate Milk Shippers (IMS) List

IMS Lists (PDF for printing*)

• July 2008 (PDF, 1.37 MB)
• April 2008 (PDF, 1.39 MB)
• January 2008 (PDF, 1.39 MB)
• October 2007 (PDF, 1.39 MB)
• July 2007 (PDF, 1.38 MB)
• April 2007 (PDF, 1.41 MB)
• January 2007 (PDF, 1.42 MB)
• October 2006 (PDF, 1.37 MB)
• July 2006 (PDF, 1.36 MB)
• April 2006 (PDF, 1.37 MB)
• January 2006 (PDF, 2.83 MB)

* Adobe Readers for PDF files are available for free from the Adobe Acrobat web site. See also Help for PDF Files and Adobe (Acrobat) Reader.

Electronic Format Subscription

As announced in the July 2005 issue of the IMS List, due to budget constraints, the printed version of the IMS list has been discontinued. Beginning in January 2006, it is being made available on FDA's web site in PDF format with notification of availability given by an electronic mailing list. Subscribe to IMSL-L mailing list.

Rules For Inclusion In The IMS List

Interstate milk shippers who have been certified by State Milk Sanitation Rating Authorities as having attained the identified milk sanitation compliance and enforcement ratings are indicated in the following IMS list. These ratings are based on compliance with the requirements of the USPHS/FDA Grade "A" Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO) and were made in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Methods of Making Sanitation Rating of Milk Shippers (MMSR).

*Proposal 301 that was passed at the 2001 NCIMS Conference, held May 5-10, 2001, in Wichita, Kansas, and concurred with by FDA states: "Transfer Stations, Receiving Stations and Milk Plants must achieve a sanitation compliance rating of 90 or better in order to be eligible for a listing in the IMS List. Sanitation compliance rating scores for Transfer and Receiving Stations and Milk Plants will not be printed in the IMS List". Therefore, the publication of a sanitation compliance rating score for Transfer and Receving Stations and Milk Plants will not be printed in the IMS List.

*Proposal 316 that was passed at the 2003 NCIMS Conference, held April 16-May 1, 2003 in Seattle, WA, and concurred with by FDA authorized the NCIMS Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Listing of milk plants, receiving stations and transfer stations. The HACCP Listing shall be made by a State Milk Rating Officer who has been certified to conduct HACCP Listings by a USPHS/FDA representative. Milk plants, receivng stations and transfer stations must achieve an acceptable HACCP Listings in order to be eligible for a listing in the IMS List.

THIS IMS LIST SUPERSEDES ALL IMS LISTS WHICH HAVE BEEN ISSUED; HERETOFORE, ALL PRECEDING IMS LISTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO ARE VOID.

The rules for inclusion in the IMS list were formulated by the official representatives of State Milk Regulatory and Rating Agencies and FDA who have participated in the meetings of the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS). These rules are as follows:

1. The interstate milk shipper's milk supply must be under the routine supervision of an official Regulatory Agency-State or local. Supervision shall be based on the procedures and standards of the USPHS/FDA Grade "A" (PMO), MMSR and Procedures Governing the Cooperative State-Public Health Service/Food and Drug Administration Program of the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (Procedures).
2. Ratings of interstate milk shipper's supplies must be made by State Milk Rating Officers who have been certified by a USPHS/FDA representative. Ratings to be listed shall include the sanitation compliance ratings of the producing farms, receiving stations, transfer stations, and milk plants and the enforcement rating of the supervising Regulatory Agency.
3. Ratings must be made on individual shipper's supplies, unless the supply is part of an area rating, which has been awarded a rating of 90% or more on the basis of an official rating. Individual ratings and area ratings shall be made at a frequency of not less than once every 24 months. All ratings shall be reported and listed to the nearest whole number.
4. The interstate milk shipper's supply must be under a program of routine laboratory control which has been checked by the State laboratory approval agency as complying substantially with Standard Methods for the Examination of Dairy Products, published by the American Public Health Association (most current edition), and with provisions of the Grade "A" PMO, and the Evaluation of Milk Laboratories (EML). Officially designated laboratories periodically checked by the State may perform this routine laboratory control.
5. USPHS/FDA shall periodically make check ratings or HACCP audits, if applicable, of the sanitation compliance and enforcement status of listed IMS shippers to assure the validity of published IMS Listings. They also shall certify the rating, and laboratory procedures of the reporting State.

USPHS/FDA will not include on this IMS list the ratings of any shipper's supply unless the written signed permission of the shipper concerned has been obtained by the State Milk Rating Agency.

Those shippers who have correctly completed Form FDA 2359i "Interstate Milk Shipper's Report" and which is received by the Milk Safety Team, HFS-626, College Park, MD will be included in the IMS List.

We are limiting the company's name to the name of the parent organization or its subsidiary, but not both. If the preferred listings is not indicated on the Form FDA 2359i, the editor will select the listing which is considered appropriate.

The use of the IMS list is entirely optional, and that its sole purpose is to assist those States who wish to utilize this information in the furtherance of their own milk sanitation regulatory program.

National Uniform Coding System For Packaging Identification Of Milk Plants

The voluntary national uniform coding system, developed by the National Labeling Committee and recommended for utilization by the Ninth NCIMS, is a system for the identification of milk plants at which milk and milk products are packaged by means of nationally recognized State and plant code numbers identified on the package. It is exclusively applicable to products pasteurized in a milk plant other than shown under the trade name, distributor's names, or private label. If this voluntary national uniform code system is not used, the name and address of the milk plant at which pasteurization took place will be identified on the cartons or containers. (Refer to Section 4, Grade "A" PMO).

Since the start of this program, the numerical code for State identification has been utilized. Public Law 89-306, October 30, 1965, authorized the Secretary of Commerce "to make appropriate recommendations to the President relating to the establishment of uniform Federal automatic data processing standard." The numerical code for the States developed under this Public Law is known as Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) and is utilized in the IMS List.

Each State, in cooperation with local jurisdictions, may assign individual identification numbers to milk plants within the State. When a State assigned number is indicated on the Form FDA 2359i, it is published in the IMS list following the name of the shipper.

If the name and address of the milk plant, at which pasteurization took place is not imprinted on the container, or included on the label proper, labeling of a container may include the name and main address of the manufacturer, processor, or distributor, plus the code number that identifies the State and milk plant in which the product was pasteurized.

FIPS Numerical Code for States
State	FIPS Code Number	State	FIPS Code Number
Alabama	01	Montana	30
Alaska	02	Nebraska	31
Arizona	04	Nevada	32
Arkansas	05	New Hampshire	33
California	06	New Jersey	34
Colorado	08	New Mexico	35
Connecticut	09	New York	36
Delaware	10	North Carolina	37
District of Columbia	11	North Dakota	38
Florida	12	Ohio	39
Georgia	13	Oklahoma	40
Hawaii	15	Oregon	41
Idaho	16	Pennsylvania	42
Illinois	17	Puerto Rico	43
Indiana	18	Rhode Island	44
Iowa	19	South Carolina	45
Kansas	20	South Dakota	46
Kentucky	21	Tennessee	47
Louisiana	22	Texas	48
Maine	23	Utah	49
Maryland	24	Vermont	50
Massachusetts	25	Virginia	51
Michigan	26	Washington	53
Minnesota	27	West Virginia	54
Mississippi	28	Wisconsin	55
Missouri	29	Wyoming	56

Example: 37-275, 37 indicates the milk plant is located in North Carolina and 275 identifies a plant within the State.

It is recommended that the part of the code indicating the State or origin always consist of two digits followed by a hypen; for example, 05- .

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Sanitation Compliance And Enforcement Ratings Of Interstate Milk Shippers

Product Codes

1. Raw Milk for Pasteurization (May Include Lowfat, Skim or Cream).
2. Pasteurized Milk, Reduced Fat, Lowfat, Skim.
3. Heat-Treated (May Include Reduced Fat, Lowfat, Skim or Cream).
4. Pasteurized Half & Half, Coffee Cream, Creams.
5. Ultra-Pasteurized Milk and Milk Products
6. Aseptic Milk and Milk Products (Including Flavored).
7. Cottage Cheese (Including Lowfat, Nonfat or Dry Curd).
8. Cultured or Acidified Milk and Milk Products.
9. Yogurt (Including Lowfat or Skim).
10. Sour Cream Products (Acidified or Cultured).
11. Whey (Liquid).
12. Whey (Condensed).
13. Whey (Dry).
14. Modified Whey Products (Condensed or Dry).
15. Condensed Milk and Milk Products.
16. Nonfat Dry Milk.
17. Buttermilk (Condensed or Dry).
18. Eggnog.
19. Lactose Reduced Milk and Milk Products.
20. Low-Sodium Milk and Milk Products.
21. Milk and Milk Products with Added Safe and Suitable Microbial Organisms (Such as Lactobacillus acidophilus).
22. Dry Milk and Milk Products.
23. Anhydrous Milk Fat.
24. Cholesterol Modified Anhydrous Milk Fat.
25. Cholesterol Modified Fluid Milk Products.
26. Cream (Condensed or Dry).
27. Blended Dry Products.
28. Whey Cream.
29. Whey Cream and Cream Blends.
30. Grade 'A' Lactose
31. Raw Goat Milk for Pasteurization.
32. Pasteurized Goat Milk and Milk Products .
33. Cultured Goat Milk and Milk Products.
34. Condensed or Dry Goat Milk and Milk Products.
35. Ultra-Pasteurized Goat Milk and Milk Products.
36. Aseptic Goat Milk and Goat Milk Products.
37. Raw Sheep Milk for Pasteurization.
38. Cultured Sheep Milk and Milk Products.
39. Concentrated Raw Milk Products for Pasteurization.
40. Concentrated Pasteurized Milk Products.
41. Ultrafiltered Permeate from Milk.
42. Ultrafiltered Permeate from Whey.

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Abbreviations

The following abbreviations are used in this IMS list:

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Certified Manufacturers Of Single-service Containers, Closures And Related Products for Milk and Milk Products-Domestic

The names of domestic manufacturers of single-service containers, closures and related products for milk and milk products who have been certified by State Milk Rating Authorities as being in satisfactory compliance with the requirements of Appendix J. Fabrication of Single-Service Containers and Closures for Milk and Milk Products of the Grade "A" PMO are listed on the following pages.

This listing of certified single-service manufacturing plants includes only the names of those plants reported to the Milk Safety Team as having been certified by State Milk Rating Officers. If furnished to FDA, the coding or identification system used by the manufacturer will be found following the name of the plant and city where it is located.

Space limitations compel us to limit the company's name to the name of the parent organization or the name of the division, but not both. If the preferred listing is not indicated on FDA Form 2359d, Report of Certification (Fabrication of Single-Service Containers and Closures for Milk and Milk Products) the editor will select the listing which is considered appropriate.

Certified Manufacturers Of Single-Service Containers, Closures And Related Products for Milk and Milk Products-Foreign

The names of foreign manufacturers of single-service containers, closures and related products for milk and milk products who have been certified by Single-Service Consultants or International Certification Pilot Program Third Party Certifiers identified in the IMS List as being in satisfactory compliance with the requirements of Appendix J. Fabrication of Single-Service Containers and Closures for Milk and Milk Products of the Grade “A” PMO are listed on the following pages.

This listing of certified single-service manufacturing plants includes only the names of those plants reported to the Milk Safety Team as having been certified by State Milk Rating Officers. If furnished to FDA, the coding or identification system used by the manufacturer will be found following the name of the plant and city where it is located.

Space limitations compel us to limit the company’s name to the name of the parent organization or the name of the division, but not both. If the preferred listing is not indicated on FORM FDA 2359d, Report of Certification (Fabrication of Single-Service Containers and Closures for Milk and Milk Products) the editor will select the listing which is considered appropriate.

*Proposal 316 that was passed at the 2005 NCIMS Conference, held May 12-17, 2005 in Columbus, OH, and concurred with by FDA, authorized the NCIMS Voluntary International Certification Pilot Program and the utilization of Third Party Certifiers, certified by FDA, to list a limited number of foreign shippers and associated single-service manufacturers and laboratories in the IMS List. This provision will expire December 31, 2007, unless extended by future NCIMS Conference action.

Explanation of Product and Material Code
First Column-Product		Second Column-Material
1 -	Containers	1 -	Metal
2 -	Closures	2 -	Paper (includes laminates)
3 -	Other products (Including sample containers and closures, valves, films, etc.)	3 -	Plastic
4 -	Containers and closures	4 -	Metal and Paper
5 -	Containers and other products	5 -	Metal and Plastic
6 -	Closures and other products	6 -	Paper and Plastic
7 -	Containers, closures and other products	7 -	Metals, Paper and Plastic
		8 -	Glass
		9 -	Rubber

Expiration Date

This date is 15 or 24 months following the survey date. Certifications of single-service manufacturing plants may be valid for 1 or 2 years. In case of a 1 year certification a 90 day grace period was inserted in this list to provide time for the transmission of the completed FORM FDA 2359d from States to the Regional Offices and forwarded to Headquarters.

Following are the criteria for IMS Listing are:

1. Single-service manufacturers that operate in conjunction with an IMS listed milk plant may be listed for 24 months, if the single-service plant is inspected at least quarterly using Form FDA 2359c- Manufacturing Plant Inspection Report, and records of such inspections and all required tests are maintained by the Regulatory Agency. Provided that, single-service manufacturers that operate in conjunction with an IMS HACCP listed milk plant may be listed for 24 months, if the single-service plant is integrated into the milk plant‘s NCIMS HACCP system and if the single-service plant is inspected at the minimum milk plant audit frequency specified in Appendix K, using Form FDA 2359c and records of such inspections and all required tests are maintained by the Regulatory Agency. The permit for the milk plant shall also include the inspection of the single service manufacturing areas.
2. Single-service manufacturers that operate in conjunction with an IMS Listed milk plant and are not inspected at least quarterly and/or are not included under a permit system may be optionally listed for twelve (12) months, plus a 90-day grace period after an evaluation.
3. Single-service manufacturers that operate as a separate entity may be listed for 24 months if the regulatory agency has a permit system and inspects the plants, using the FDA form 2359c, at least quarterly. All testing of containers and individual water supplies shall be under the direction of the regulatory agency and kept on file.
4. Single-service manufacturers that operates as a separate entity and are not inspected by Regulatory Agency personnel at least quarterly and/or do not have permit may be optionally listed for twelve (12) months, plus a 90-day grace period, after an evaluation.

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Milk Laboratories Approved By Federal And State Agencies

Milk laboratories and the laboratory procedures performed, which have been found to be in substantial compliance with the EML and Standard Methods for the Examination of Dairy Products (most current edition) and are listed on the following pages. State Central Laboratories (Cen.) and procedures are approved by Milk Laboratory Evaluation Officers of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Official (Off.), Commercial (Com.), Dairy Industry (Ind.) and Certified industry supervisor (CIS.) laboratories and procedures are approved by FDA certified State Milk Laboratory Evaluation Officers.

The IMS list includes the laboratory names, locations, numbers assigned by the FDA, expiration dates, the dates of the last two split samples participated in, and the procedures for which the laboratories are approved.

Laboratory Procedure Codes Code #           Procedures 2. Standard Plate Count 3. Plate Loop Count (raw milk only) 4. Spiral Plate Count (raw milk only) 5. Petrifilm Aerobic Count 7. BactoScan FC (raw milk only) 9. Detection of Inhibitory Substances B2. Charm BSDA C2. Charm II Competitive C3. Charm II Sequential C4. Charm II Quantitative C9. Charm II Cloxacillin C10. Charm II Sulfa C11. Charm II Chloramphenicol C12. Charm II Tetracycline C13. Charm SL (Safe Level) C14. Charm SL6 C15. Charm SL3 D1. Delvotest P D3. Delvotest P 5 Pack I1. New Snap BL 12. Direct Somatic Cell Count 16. Electronic Somatic Cell Count 20. Petrifilm Coliform Count/High Sensitivity Coliform Count 21. Coliform Plate Count 22. Pasteurized Milk Containers 24. Dairy Water 25. Dairy Water Testing, Other 26. Disintegration Test 27. Flat Lid or Pour Contact Tests 28. Phosphatase Test-Flourophos 29. Phosphatase Test-Charm 30. Vitamin Analysis (A, D or A & D)

Expiration Date
The expiration date (EXP. DATE) shown is the date that the laboratory's approval status actually expires. A two (2) month grace period, however, is allowed to accommodate the transmission of laboratory reports to the FDA.

Laboratory Number Code
Five (5) digit numbers are assigned to each laboratory by the FDA. The first two (2) digits identify the State in which the laboratory is located according to the FIPS Numerical Code for States (Refer to page iv). The following three (3) digits are assigned according to the laboratory type as shown below:

-- 001--099	Central and Officials Laboratories
-- 100--299	Commercial Laboratories
-- 300--599	Industrial Laboratories
-- 600--799*	Certified Industry Supervisors
-- 800--899	Certified Vitamin Laboratories
-- 900--999	Federal Laboratories
* The names of Certified Industry Supervisors are listed at the end of the individual State listings.

Laboratory Classifications
F = Approved, this laboratory may perform the indicated procedures for IMS purposes.

C = Conditionally approved, this laboratory does not have full status, but may perform the indicated procedures for IMS purposes.

N = Not approved, this laboratory has recently had its approval removed and may no longer be used for official IMS testing.