Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 10/12/11

USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service will amend a proposed rule banning six strains of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) to clarify how it addresses imports, according to the North American Meat Processors Association (NAMP).

FSIS said last week at a meeting of the Beef Industry Food Safety Council (BIFSCo) it will revise the rule to state that if imported beef product tests “potential positive” at the port of entry, the agency will hold all of the implicated product and notify the importer, NAMP said in its newsletter.

Imported product will be subject to recall only if tests confirm a positive and the implicated product has not been held by the importer, according to NAMP.

The current rule states: “For imported products tested at port of entry, if the product tests positive at the second stage and has [not been held] at the import establishment, it will be subject to recall. If the product has been held, the product will be refused entry.”

The revision would align the proposed rule with current FSIS policies on E. coli O157:H7 testing of imports.

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