FDA’s New Guidance on Safe Production of Foods Containing Peanut-Derived Ingredients Lacks Substance; Underscores Agency’s Inadequacy
By: RICHARD J. WEGENER
March 16, 2009
In response to one of the most far-reaching Salmonella outbreaks, and attendant product recalls in recent memory, government administrators have acted. Unfortunately, the response sheds little new light on the problem and underscores the inadequacy of the current food safety regime.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) issued a Guidance to the food industry last week recommending measures that manufacturers can take to address the risk of Salmonella contamination in peanut derived products received from their ingredient suppliers and for the products they themselves produce. CFSAN also issued a companion Bulletin to operators of food-service establishments and retail food stores that offer food products containing peanuts and peanut-derived ingredients.
What does the FDA suggest? In a nutshell, the agency recommends that purchasers acquire their peanut-derived ingredients only from suppliers who use production processes that have been demonstrated to adequately reduce the presence of Salmonella, or that they ensure that their own manufacturing and packaging processes will adequately reduce the presence of Salmonella.
How does that advice work for you? The FDA will accept public comments on the Guidance, which will be published soon in the Federal Register.
Hungry for more specific details? Both documents are available on the Internet. Click here for more information on the Guide. Click here for more information on the Bulletin. Both offer an interesting, if not reassuring, recipe for avoiding future outbreaks of Salmonella in peanut-derived products. Please contact your Fredrikson & Byron attorney if you have any additional questions or concerns.