The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) yesterday published proposed regulations to implement a new voluntary cooperative program under which state inspected meat processing establishments will be eligible to ship meat and poultry products in interstate commerce.
The new program, created in the 2008 Farm Bill to supplement the existing state-federal cooperative inspection program, will allow state inspected meat plants with 25 or fewer employees to ship products across state lines. This announcement is part of the USDA’s new “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food” initiative. This new initiative seeks to better connect consumers with local producers to help develop local and regional food systems to spur economic opportunity.
On a recent visit to Vermont, USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan taped a segment for the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food website with Vermont farmers and agriculture officials including Vermont Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Dave Lane, Tom Stearns of High Mowing Seeds and Andrew Meyer of Vermont Soy. Vermont will be the premiere focus when the website is launched.
USDA’s goal with the new proposed regulations for interstate shipment of meat and poultry is to provide new economic opportunities for many small meat and poultry establishments whose markets are limited. Currently, 27 states, including Vermont, operate meat or poultry programs and FSIS verifies that state programs implement requirements that are equal to or greater than those imposed under the federal meat and poultry products inspection acts. For these programs, FSIS provides up to 50 percent of the state’s operating funds and provides oversight and enforcement of the program.
Under the proposed rule, selected establishments will receive inspection services from federally trained and/or supervised state inspection personnel who will verify that the establishments meet all federal food safety requirements. Meat and poultry products produced under the voluntary cooperative program will bear an official USDA mark of inspection enabling interstate shipment of the products.
For more information visit the USDA website at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/News_&_Events/NR_091509_01/index.asp
Source: Vermont Agriculture Industry. 9.17.2009
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