This summer, let alone the past year, has been a busy one for new programs and guidelines from the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). In May alone, the department announced new food-safety protections for consumers, the intention to target six new strains of E. coli in raw beef trim and a streamlined meat and poultry label-approval process. How will these changes affect processors, and what’s on the horizon?
Just in time for the summer grilling season, USDA-FSIS launched the Public Health Information System (PHIS), which aims to replace and improve upon existing foodborne hazard programs (the Performance Based Inspection System and Automated Import Information System) by analyzing data quickly to detect and stop foodborne illnesses.