W. Benjy Mikel University of Kentucky

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

The National Pork Board began the Salmonella Assistance Intervention Program (SAIP) in 2000. This program targeted primarily small and very small meat packers who were having difficulty meeting the requirements of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDAFSIS) Salmonella standards. The FSIS set Salmonella performance standards to verify whether SSOP/ HACCP systems are effective in controlling contamination with harmful bacteria. According to USDA, Salmonella was selected because; (1) it is the most common bacterial cause of foodborne illness; (2) FSIS baseline data shows that it colonizes a variety of mammals and birds and occurs at a frequency which permits changes to be detected; (3) current methodologies can recover Salmonella from a variety of meat and poultry products; and (4) intervention strategies aimed at reducing fecal contamination and other sources of Salmonella on raw products should be effective against other pathogens. Detailed guidelines related to the USDA-FSIS response to Salmonella Performance Standards failures by plants may be found at the following web site: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FSISNotices/28-02.htm.

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

The issue of the safety of the food supply has been deliberately debated during the past few years. Continual media coverage has kept this issue at the forefront of most consumers’ minds. The meat industry, in particular, has been focused on as one area where improvement can and should be made. In an effort by the industry and regulatory agencies to further enhance the safety of the meat supply, the meat inspection reform began to take place.

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP’s) were successfully implemented in January, 1997. Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) programs were implemented according to the Pathogen Reduction Final Rule. On January 26, plants with greater than 500 employees were required to implement HACCP programs. In January, 1999, plants with between 10-500 employees were required to implement HACCP.

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

The importance of food safety and sanitation as it relates to your economic survivability is paramount. It just takes a review of how a few of the industry giants have been humbled by recent product recalls to understand the necessity of proper attention to sanitation. Sanitation, although normally an afterthought or a job relegated to someone lower down the employee chain, can be the difference in not only survival but profitability. Below are some important aspects of sanitation to consider in order to sustain your profitability and reputation.

Publish Date: June 3, 2006

What is a Recall? When would I have to conduct a recall? How do I initiate a recall? What affect will a recall have on my business? These, and many more, questions are currently being asked by small processors as they develop and implement their Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) programs in response to meat inspection reform. The 1996 Pathogen Reduction; Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point Final Rule dictated that all meat and poultry processors implement HACCP programs. One potential important facet of a HACCP program is a recall program in order that products may be removed from the marketplace as soon as possible. Although most companies shudder at the idea of a recall, it is vitally important to be prepared to retrieve product that might pose a health risk to consumers.