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HHS Press Release: January 1994
HHS NEWS
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
P94-1 Food and Drug Administration
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Brad Stone (202) 205-4102
Jan. 21, 1994 (703) 204-4497
Health and Human Services Secretary Donna E. Shalala today
announced a major new food safety initiative in which the Food
and Drug Administration will require the seafood industry to
establish safety controls subject to regulatory oversight and
review.
In a related move, the FDA issued its updated Model Food Code
designed to help state and local governments prevent foodborne
diseases. The Model Food Code, which incorporates the principles
of mandatory safety controls, outlines the practices for safe
food handling at the retail level.
"The truth is, most cases of food-borne illnesses are
preventable," Shalala said. "And it's our job to prevent them.
That's why we are strengthening our seafood safety program."
The seafood safety regulations are based on the principles of the
system known as Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP).
The system calls for a science-based analysis of potential
hazards, determination of where the hazards can occur in
processing, and institution of preventive measures to prevent
problems and corrective actions if they do occur. Detailed HACCP
record-keeping then allows government regulators to monitor
closely how well firms are performing on a continuing basis.
"This system of mandatory controls draws its strength from one
simple principle: the notion that the best way to provide safe,
high-quality food is to build safety in during processing," said
Food and Drugs Commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D.
"Today, we inspect for safety after the fact. That's simply not
good enough. We need to approach food safety by preventing
problems up from."
The comprehensive mandatory controls that will be required under
FDA's HACCP proposal will be monitored under current FDA
surveillance and inspection activities directed at seafood
production.
All seafood processors, packers and warehouses will be included.
Each will be required to adopt a HACCP plan appropriate to its
business, monitor it and keep records that will be inspected
regularly by FDA and state inspectors.
Under this system, for example, firms will have to document that
fish and shellfish have not been made unsafe by pollution or
natural toxins in the water. Companies will have to verify that
ready-to-eat seafood has been cooked to a safe temperature, that
safeguards have been taken against cross-contamination between
cooked and raw seafood, and that finished products are held at
proper temperature.
The rules will apply equally to domestic and imported products.
Many other countries are also considering similar systems. Under
today's proposals, companies would have one year after
publication of final regulations to implement fully their HACCP
programs.
FDA has also begun working with other segments of the food
industry, state officials and consumer groups to consider whether
preventive food safety measures can be applied to other foods.
Like the seafood rules, such measures would have to be tailored
to the nature of potential hazards for each food and to the
operations of each affected industry. Among the topics to be
addressed are where food safety hazards exist, at what points
they could be minimized eliminated, methods to monitor compliance
and the laws and regulations of other countries.
The announcement of the updated Model Food Code is the
culmination of a cooperative effort among federal, state and
local officials, food industries and consumer groups. It
provides a model set of regulations that can be used for retail
food establishments such as restaurants, institutions like
nursing homes, grocery stores and vending operations.
Standards include items like cooking times and temperatures,
refrigeration temperatures, and storage requirements for many
types of foods.
FDA will hold public meetings in nine cities in the next eight
weeks to solicit public comments about the seafood safety
proposal.
Comments on the seafood proposal will be accepted for 90 days
after publication in the Federal Register. Written comments
should cite docket number 93N-0195 and be sent to: Food and Drug
Administration, Dockets Management Branch, HFA-305, Room 1-23,
12420 Parklawn Dr., Rockville, MD 20857
FDA is one of eight Public Health Service agencies within HHS.