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FSIS Announces Groundbreaking Outreach Program to Assist Small and Very Small Plants
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| Congressional and Public Affairs
(202) 720-9113
Steven Cohen |
COLLEGE STATION, Texas, May 31,
2006 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and
Inspection Service (FSIS) today announced a groundbreaking initiative
to provide the assistance necessary for small and very small plant
owners to further improve their establishments' food safety programs.
"As part of our commitment to ensure food safety at all
of our nation's plants, FSIS held a national series of listening sessions
and has identified innovative ways for small and very small establishments
to fully benefit from our safety program that is responsible for dramatic
reductions in foodborne illness," said USDA Under Secretary for
Food Safety Dr. Richard Raymond. "We will continue to enhance
our outreach efforts to these plants and enlist our partners to ensure
critical training, access to food safety experts and information resources
are available in a format that's uniform, easily accessible and consistent."
The FSIS initiative also offers the opportunity for increased interagency
collaboration. Through enhanced outreach efforts, FSIS will make plant
owners and operators aware of loan programs available through USDA's
Rural Business and Cooperative programs. Joining Raymond and other
dignitaries at the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP)
ceremony in College Station, site of an FSIS training activity, was
USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Thomas Dorr.
"Plant owners, working through lenders, will be able to
obtain loan guarantees, making it easier for them to gain access to
commercial credit in order to upgrade facilities or equipment, which
will further enhance food safety," Dorr said. "This initiative
is a good example of USDA agencies working together to better serve
the needs of consumers and industry."
The program will feature a toll free number and webpage to assist
small plants and better access to technical resources, including scientific
validation materials and education and training information, delivered
in new and innovative ways. Partnerships with industry, academia,
consumers, federal, State, and international public health partners
will be expanded and better leveraged. FSIS will assess the needs
of the small and very small plants as well as evaluate the effectiveness
of Agency programs designed to assist them, on a continuing basis.
Additional aspects of the program will include utilizing FSIS employees
to meet proactively with small and very small plants to get more details
about their specific needs and provide joint training sessions for
small and very small plants and FSIS employees.
Small and very small plants comprise about 90 percent of the approximately
6,000 federally inspected meat, poultry and egg product plants in
the U.S. A small plant has between 10 and 500 employees and generates
more than $2.5 million in annual sales. A very small plant employs
fewer than 10 people or generates less than $2.5 million in annual
sales. |
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Last Modified:
May 31, 2006 |
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