Each day begins a new adventure in the world of representing small processors before regulatory agencies. I am not sure if we have had a continuous full moon for the last several months or not, but it seems like people have gone mad in the area of regulatory management.
As you know, small processors are faced with some daunting challenges in order to meet the new regulatory requirements being issued by FSIS, especially when it comes to lethality and stabilization. The American Association of Meat Processors, along with others in the industry, are making great progress in our work with FSIS to come up alternatives better suited to help small processors meet the regulatory requirements. It does not stop there. It seems like something new comes out everyday that makes life a little more challenging for processors, and we find ourselves being called upon more and more to help put out fires with inspection personnel around the country, both at the federal and state inspection level.