Alvin Sewell

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The Modernization of Poultry Slaughter Inspection final rule moved forward like a dog digging under a fence. While concerned activist groups certainly have issues yet to be resolved, there is a huge victory for plant workers’ and consumers’ safety within the final version of the rule. Line speed. I have said all along that line…

Now that FSIS is moving forward with the Modernization of Poultry Slaughter Inspection rule, it’s time that all stakeholders face the issues identified in recent months. Standardizing industry training and methods of carcass sorting, worker safety, changing the carcass-by-carcass law, and classifying Salmonella as an adulterant are issues that have not been properly addressed by …

The current volley of documents and letters, concerning line speed and worker safety, is telling. It shows us volumes about the push for the HACCP Based Models Project (HIMP) into law. It also shows the urgency of ramming HIMP into place on a timeline that does not have room for dissent nor discussion. In the…

A healthy progression of events is occurring in the world of food safety. There are specific issues being debated over the Modernization of Poultry Slaughter proposal. The scientific community is zeroing in on specific strains of pathogens. Media and consumer groups are focusing on antibiotic resistance. Industry and labor groups are talking about ergonomic safety.…

There are many arguments, pro and con, about efforts of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to renovate its meat processing inspection process. In my last editorial, I outlined the origin and pitfalls of FSIS’ proposal to extend the decade-old HACCP Inspection Models Project (HIMP) pilot program into plants…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) intends to implement a sweeping and total change to its food safety program by drastically modifying carcass-by-carcass inspection and reducing the government surveillance of meat and poultry safety. This has become known as the HACCP Based Models Project, or “HIMP.” FSIS has been trying …