The first deadline for compliance with Food Safety and Modernization Act mandates for Preventative Controls for Human and Animal Feed has passed and QA and facility managers are now dotting the “I’s” and crossing their “T’s” on their checklists and making sure their employee training programs are documented and verified.

 

The mandates impact large food processing outfits and ready-to-eat food companies immediately while smaller companies (less than 500 workers globally) have additional time (one to two years) to get up speed with the new mandates.

 

Key elements of the mandates include requiring documented food safety training protocols for plant employees and the ability of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct unannounced inspections and immediately shut down a facility should circumstances warrant.

 

The new mandates also impact food packaging manufacturers that make everything from milk cartons to carry out containers. These facilities – most of which likely have never been subject to a pest or food safety audit before – will be required to install a verifiable pest defense plan.

 

Clark Pest Control’s pest management and food safety experts recommend clients have us conduct a risk assessment of their facility to identify possible pest threats and/or areas that are most susceptible to pest activity. The assessment allows clients to develop a pest remediation plan, document what was done to correct the problem and what the end result was.

 

The new FSMA pest management mandates cover the usual suspects – rodents, flying insects, cockroaches and stored product pests – but include a special emphasis on birds because of the threat their droppings present to food contamination.

 

Recently Joann Givens, co-chair of the FSMA Operations Team Steering Committee and director of FDA’s Food and Feed Program in the Office of Regulatory Affairs, provided a look ahead at the short-term effects the FSMA mandates will have on the operations of human and animal food processing facilities.

 

Originally published: https://www.fda.gov/food/food-safety-modernization-act-fsma/what-expect-now-first-big-fsma-compliance-dates-are-here

 

If you are looking for a pest management partner that will deliver exceptional results, provide outstanding customer care, and protect your employees and customers from unwanted and potentially harmful pests, call or text Clark Pest Control at (800) 882-0374 or visit www.clarkpest.com/commercial-services