Representatives Steve Womack (R-AR) and Jim Costa (D-CA) have requested a 180-day extension to the contentious rule proposed by USDA entitled Salmonella Framework for Raw Poultry Products.
The request is based on “the complexity and length of the proposed rule and the fact that nearly all chicken marketed in the United States will be impacted”. The letter noted that the rule raises questions of clarity requiring explanations to present a comprehensive response.
Gary Kushner, interim president of the NCC stated, “The industry attempt to engage with FSIS for the past two years during the formulation of this proposed rule and unfortunately our input was largely disregarded”. He added, “NCC and our member companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars and have worked for decades to develop and refine best practices to reduce Salmonella and protect public health.”
Despite two webinars presented by USDA the industry was not provided with clarity concerning technical and practical issues relating to implementation.
The letter noted that if the Rule if implemented it would result in condemnation of a considerable proportion of chicken output with prepared product sent to landfills at a time when over 40 million Americans are food insecure.
The NCC position is that the proposed rule is unnecessary, will raise cost to producers and consumers alike and will lead to food waste without necessarily reducing the incidence of chicken-borne salmonellosis.