Food Safety and Inspection Service United States Department of Agriculture Washington, D.C. 20250-3700

Issue Papers

December 15, 1997

Issue Paper: Public Release of Salmonella Testing Results

ISSUE: 

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is providing its views on release of Salmonella testing data collected by FSIS in connection with the HACCP/Pathogen Reduction final rule.

BACKGROUND: 

With the publication of its HACCP/Pathogen Reduction final rule, FSIS adopted pathogen reduction performance standards for raw meat and poultry products using Salmonella as the target organism. To verify that this requirement is being met, FSIS will conduct Salmonella testing in establishments that product raw meat and poultry products.

The goal of the Salmonella testing program is to verify that pathogen reduction performance standards are being met by each establishment, with an ultimate goal of reducing the incidence of that organism and other enteric pathogens on raw meat ant poultry products nationwide. The pathogen reduction standard for Salmonella requires testing of products not to determine product disposition but as a measure of process effectiveness in limiting contamination with this pathogen. Individual test results are not meaningful under this program because the performance standards have been established to measure performance over time; thus, multiple samples are required to make an appropriate compliance determination.

The Salmonella testing program is being accomplishes by FSIS in two phases a phase and a compliance phase. The principal objective of the phase was to acquire Salmonella performance standards test data to enable both FSIS ant establishments to see how they were performing relative to the standard. The pre-implementation phase began on June 1, 1997. The compliance phase begins in January 1998. The effective dates for compliance with the Salmonella performance standard are the same as effective dates for HACCP implementation: January 26, 1998, for large plants; January 25, 1999, for small plants; and January 25, 2000, for very small plants. After the effective date(s), Salmonella testing results will trigger regulatory actions when the performance standards set forth in the HACCP/Pathogen Reduction final rule are not met by an establishment.

AVAILABILITY OF SALMONELLA TESTING DATA:

• Pre-implementation Salmonella testing data: This refers to Salmonella testing data collected between June l, 1997, and an establishment's HACCP implementation date, FSIS does not intend to use the data collect between June 1, 1997, and January 26, 1998, for any purpose because it did not collect as much data as originally intended; there are many incomplete sets of data. FSIS will collect pre-implementation testing data from small and very small plants and will determine appropriate use ant disclosure of this data as data collection proceeds. Requests for data under the Freedom of Information Act will be addressed on a case-by-case basis.

• Compliance phase Salmonella testing data: This refers to Salmonella testing data FSIS collects in plants subject to the HACCP requirements. FSIS will send to individual establishments their own testing data upon completion of the full sample set. In addition, plant-specific testing data will be available in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act. The Agency does not consider testing to be complete until there is a full sample set, In all cases, the Agency intents to provide en explanation of the purpose of the testing ant the meaning of the data (in general terms) with any Salmonella testing data released. FSIS has no specific plans to post the Salmonella testing data on its web site.

• FSIS believes that it should publish annually a report on the Salmonella testing program. This report would be made available to the public. The contents and format of the report have not yet been decided.

Pathogen Reduction/HACCP Page | FSIS Home Page | USDA Home Page