In the latest FSIS constituent update, FSIS Administrator Al Almanza wrote a farewell note to the industry. He is retiring from the industry after 39 years of service. His comments are below:

“After 39 years with FSIS, I am retiring from public service. Regardless of my title or position—be it food inspector in a small slaughter plant in Dalhart, Texas where I began my FSIS career in 1978 or in my current position as Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety and FSIS Administrator—I have been driven by the Agency’s mission to protect public health by preventing foodborne illness. It is a mission that I feel strongly is among the government’s most critical, and I am honored to have been a part of it for almost four decades.

“As I look back over my ten years leading the Agency, I am proud of the accomplishments we have made together as FSIS has continually looked for ways to improve food safety and become more efficient. Highlights for me have been using a science-based approach to modernize the poultry slaughter inspection system, implementing the Public Health Information System (PHIS), reducing listeriosis and E. coli O157:H7 illnesses from FSIS-regulated products and adding six other dangerous strains of E. coli to the zero-tolerance list, and implementing performance standards for Campylobacter and Salmonella. FSIS has also strengthened its collaboration with partner agencies, such as the Food and Drug Administration, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, leveraging our expertise and actions to better protect public health.