January 28, 2000

The President's Council on Food Safety has identified egg safety as one component of the public health issue of food safety that warrants immediate federal interagency action. In response, the "Egg Safety From Production to Consumption: An Action Plan to Eliminate Salmonella Enteritidis Illnesses Due to Eggs" was developed and announced in December 1999. The Action Plan identifies the systems and practices to be implemented to reduce and ultimately, eliminate eggs as a source of human Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) illnesses. An interim goal of the Egg Safety Action Plan is a 50 percent reduction in egg-associated SE illnesses by 2005.

To consolidate egg safety oversight responsibilities and provide clarity, the President's Council on Food Safety identified one responsible agency for each stage of the farm-to-table continuum based on the strengths of each agency. FDA will develop standards for the producer and State agencies will provide inspection and enforcement of the standards on the farm. FSIS will develop standards for both shell egg packers and egg products processors and will provide inspection and enforcement for both. CDC will conduct surveillance and monitoring activities focusing on human health and FDA will conduct surveillance and monitoring of the food supply.

To begin the implementation process, an Egg Safety National Standards Work Group has been established. The Work Group is composed of representatives from FDA, USDA, and several States and is charged with identifying the components required and developing, with public input, proposed national standards for the producer, shell egg packers and egg products processors. The Work Group began its discussions during a week long meeting held January 10 - January 14 at FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition in Washington, D.C.

The Work Group discussed existing egg quality assurance programs, on-farm goals, packer and processor goals and processes for ensuring constituent input. The Work Group over the next several months will components of the national SE risk reduction strategies and plans to offer the proposed components for comment to its Stake Holders through announcement in the Federal Register and a public meeting tentatively scheduled for March/April 2000.

Food Safety Initiative Staff E-mail: cah@vm.cfsan.fda.gov

Office Number: (202) 260-8920 · FAX (202) 260-9653 CFSAN Web site: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/