[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 213 (Thursday, November 2, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65828-65829]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-28147]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 00-042N]
HACCP-Based Inspection Models Project (HIMP): Performance
Standards for Young Turkey, Young Chicken, and Market Hog HIMP Plants
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is publishing
the performance standards for food safety and non-food safety
conditions that it will apply in a limited number of young turkey and
market hog slaughter plants that participate in the HACCP-based
Inspection Models Project (HIMP). FSIS has already announced the
performance standards for young chicken HIMP plants at public meetings,
but the Agency is including them in this Notice.
DATES: There is no formal comment period for this Notice; however,
comments are welcome.
ADDRESSES: Submit one original and two copies of written comments to
FSIS Docket Clerk, Docket #00-042N, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Food Safety and Inspection Service, Room 102 Cotton Annex Building, 300
12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700. All comments submitted in
response to this Notice will be available for public inspection in the
Docket Clerk's Office between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Grasso, Project Manager,
FSIS, at 202 205-0025, FAX 202 205-0058, e-mail [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FSIS began HIMP in 1998 to determine whether
new government slaughter inspection procedures, along with new plant
responsibilities, can improve food safety and increase consumer
protection. The pilot project is a natural extension of the Agency's
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) approach in place
nationwide within all meat and poultry plants. The Agency adopted the
HACCP approach in its Pathogen Reduction; Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Point (HACCP) Systems; Final Rule of July 25, 1996 (61 FR
38806).
The project represents the Agency's effort to apply HACCP
principles with respect to industry and FSIS roles and responsibilities
in slaughter operations, which should allow FSIS to better focus its
in-plant resources and regulatory verification activities on public
health concerns. HIMP does not involve processing plants.
Under HIMP, FSIS has developed new inspection models for pilot
testing in a limited number of plants slaughtering young, healthy, and
uniform animals, specifically young poultry, fed cattle, and market
hogs. With these models, FSIS designs HACCP-based slaughter inspection
procedures, and plants develop appropriate controls for meeting FSIS
requirements.
Through an independent contractor, the Agency conducted baseline
sampling in volunteer plants that slaughter young chickens, young
turkeys, and market hogs. The baseline sampling results reflect the
accomplishments of current slaughter-line inspection procedures in the
pilot plants and provide a measure--a ``performance standard''--for
judging the accomplishments of these same plants operating under new
HIMP procedures. The performance standards address both food safety and
non-food safety conditions. The food safety performance standards for
young turkeys and market hogs are set at zero to protect consumers from
conditions that may be harmful. As stated above, the performance
standards for non-food safety conditions--collectively termed ``other
consumer protection'' or OCP--reflect the baseline data collected by
the independent contractor in participating plants before the new
models were instituted. These baseline data thus represent the
accomplishments of the current inspection system.
For OCP concerns, 2000 samples were collected by the independent
contractor at each of five young turkey and five market hog plants over
five weeks and evaluated organoleptically--by the senses. As with young
chickens, the new OCP performance standards have been set at the level
that the top 75
[[Page 65829]]
percent of the plants and our inspectors achieved for each category of
defects. For young turkeys and market hogs, with five plants each, the
75th percentile was set slightly below the 4th of the five baseline
results, using the formula: 75th percentile = (.25 * 3rd place values)
+ (.75 * 4th place values).
Participating plants must meet these tighter performance standards
for food safety and non-food safety concerns. Plants are expected to
revise their HACCP systems to achieve the food safety standards and to
develop process control plans to achieve OCP standards. Plants are
responsible for identifying and removing carcasses that do not meet
these standards for reprocessing or condemnation, as appropriate. FSIS
inspectors are responsible for inspection and for verifying that plants
are continuously achieving the required outcomes.
Microbial sampling was also conducted by the independent
contractor: 600 carcasses were sampled at each plant, 300 for
Salmonella and 300 for generic E. coli. Levels of these organisms are
evaluated according to the performance standards and criteria set forth
in the Agency's Pathogen Reduction/HACCP Final Rule mentioned above.
FSIS conducts continuous inspection in HIMP plants to make a
critical appraisal of carcasses to determine that they are not
adulterated as defined under FSIS regulations and are thus eligible to
receive the mark of inspection.
Young Turkey HIMP Performance Standards Based on Current Inspection
System
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Food Safety 1 Condition--Infectious (e.g., Zero*
septicemia, toxemia).
Food Safety 2 Contamination--Digestive Zero**
Content (fecal material).
OCP 1 Condition--Animal Diseases (e.g., 1.2%
airsacculitis, arthritis, ascites,
cadaver, enteritis, erysipelas,
generalized inflammatory process,
neoplasms, nephritis, osteomyelitis,
pericarditis, pneumonia, tenosynovitis).
OCP 2 Condition--Miscellaneous (e.g., 56.6%
breast blister, bruises, external
mutilation, fractures, overscald, sores,
scabs, and localized inflammatory process).
OCP 3 Contamination--Digestive Content 12.7%
(e.g., ingesta).
OCP 4 Dressing Defects--Other (e.g., 95.9%
extraneous material-other, feathers, lung,
oil gland, trachea, bile).
OCP 5 Dressing Defects--Digestive Tract 7.5%
Tissue (e.g., bursa of fabricius, cloaca,
crop, esophagus, intestine).
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* Baseline result was 0.0% at 75th percentile.
** Baseline result was 0.3% at 75th percentile.
Market Hogs HIMP Performance Standards Based on Current Inspection
System
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Food Safety 1 Condition-Infectious (e.g., Zero *
septicemia/toxemia, pyemia, Cysticercus).
Food Safety 2 Contamination-Digestive Zero **
Content (e.g., fecal material, ingesta,
milk).
Food Safety 3 Ante-mortem suspect (e.g., Zero
neurologic conditions, moribund, pyrexic,
severe lameness).
OCP 1 Carcass-Pathology (e.g., arthritis, 4.1%
emaciation, erysipelas, localized abscess,
mastitis, metritis, mycobacteriosis [M.
Avium], neoplasms, pericarditis,
pleuritis, pneumonia, uremia).
OCP 2 Condition-Visceral Pathology * (e.g., 7.2%
cystic kidneys, enteritis/gastritis, fecal
contamination of viscera, nephritis/
pyelonephritis, parasites-other than
Cysticercus, peritonitis).
OCP 3 Miscellaneous (e.g., anemia/Pale Soft 20.5%
Exudative pork, bile, bruise, edema,
external mutilation, fractures, icterus,
odor, skin lesions, scabs, untrimmed hair,
toenails not removed).
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* Baseline result was 0.0% at 75th percentile.
** Baseline result was 2.6% at 75th percentile.
Young Chicken HIMP Performance Standards Based on Current Inspection
System
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Food Safety 1 Condition-Infectious (e.g., Zero *
septicemia, toxemia).
Food Safety 2 Contamination-Digestive Zero **
Content (e.g., fecal material).
OCP 1 Condition-Animal Diseases (e.g., 1.7%
airsacculitis).
OCP 2 Condition-Miscellaneous (e.g., 52.5%
bruises, sores, and other processing
defects).
OCP 3 Contamination-Digestive Content 18.6%
(e.g., ingesta).
OCP 4 Dressing Defects-Other (e.g., 80.0%
feathers).
OCP 5 Dressing Defects (e.g., digestive 20.8%
tract tissue).
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* Baseline result was 0.1% at 75th percentile.
** Baseline result was 1.5% at 75th percentile.
Additional Public Notification
Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to better ensure
that minorities, women, and persons with disabilities are aware of this
notice, FSIS will announce it and provide copies of this Federal
Register publication in the FSIS Constituent Update. FSIS provides a
weekly FSIS Constituent Update, which is communicated via fax to more
than 300 organizations and individuals. In addition, the update is
available on-line through the FSIS web page located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov. The update is used to provide information regarding
FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal Register notices, FSIS
public meetings, recalls, and any other types of information that could
affect or would be of interest to Agency constituents or stakeholders.
The constituent fax list consists of industry, trade, and farm groups,
consumer interest groups, allied health professionals, scientific
professionals, and other individuals who have requested to be included.
Through these various channels, FSIS is able to provide information to
a much broader, more diverse audience.
For more information and to be added to the constituent fax list,
fax your request to the Congressional and Public Affairs Office, at 202
720-5704.
Done in Washington, DC, on October 25, 2000.
Thomas J. Billy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 00-28147 Filed 11-1-00; 8:45 am]
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