Acts of terrorism and other intentional tampering with food are the subjects of the third and final installment of industry regulatory guidance on how to deal with the intentional adulteration of the food supply.

With the release of the draft guidance, the Food and Drug Administration completed the agency’s mandate to develop regulations to prevent, react to, and investigate acts of intentional contamination of food as described in the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) of 2011.

“Unlike the other FSMA rules that address specific foods or hazards, the IA rule requires the food industry to implement risk-reducing strategies for processes in food facilities that are significantly vulnerable to intentional adulteration,” according to an update from the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN). 

The final installment of draft guidance for the Intentional Adulteration (AI) includes chapters covering topics focusing on food defense corrective actions, food defense verification, reanalysis, and recordkeeping. It also discusses how companies can determine whether they are considered small or very small operations, which are exempt from many of the FSMA regulations.

Food “facilities” covered by the rule are required to develop and implement food defense plans that identify vulnerabilities and how to deal with them. The businesses are also required to document that the mitigation strategies are working. Inspections are set to begin in March this year. 

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