What is the status of the adoption of HACCP within the meat and poultry industry?
The current food inspection program is based on a “see, smell and touch” approach that relies more on detection of potential hazards than prevention. Furthermore, the current inspection program was designed in the 1930s when the threat of diseased animals and physical contaminants were the main concerns. Today, microbiological and chemical contamination, which cannot be seen, are of greater interest. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently mandated HACCP for the nation’s 7,000 meat and poultry plants. What is the USDA’s Pathogen Reduction/HACCP Regulation? USDA is pursuing a farm to table approach to food safety by taking steps to improve the safety of meat and poultry at each step in the food production, processing, distribution and marketing chain. On July 25, 1996, USDA released its Pathogen Reduction/HACCP final rule. The final rule will further target pathogens that cause foodborne illness, strengthen industry responsibility to produce safe food, and focus inspection and plant
