Is your food plant program FSMA-compliant?

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June 22, 2017

FSMA logoMcCloud Services, based in South Elgin, Ill., and serving Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, Ohio and Wisconsin, is generating awareness on ways food facilities can build an effective pest management program that will comply under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

To prevent widespread food illnesses created by improper processing or sanitation practices, FSMA was introduced by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 2011 to ensure the nation’s food supply is safe by implementing proactive controls as the foundation of the law. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 48 million people (1 in 6 Americans) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die each year from foodborne diseases. The FSMA enables the FDA to better protect public health by strengthening the food safety system.

A comprehensive pest management plan is a critical component to a FSMA-compliant food safety program.

Food facilities are required to implement a written preventive controls plan, which includes sanitation maintenance and pest management practices. The goal is to build a proactive pest management program based on identified risks, and encourage the food facility to operate under a preventive mindset versus reactive.

There are several elements that go into an effective pest management program under FSMA guidelines, including:

  • performing a risk analysis and thorough inspection of past pest pressures;
  • establishing preventative controls;
  • conducting ongoing monitoring and visual inspections; and
  • identifying corrective actions to control the source through root cause analysis for long-term success.

Electronic documentation is also a key component in program development, verification and maintenance, and proper evaluation must occur on a regular basis.

McCloud Services discusses these critical program elements required for a FSMA-compliant food safety program in its article, “Implementing FSMA Rules for Pest Prevention & Corrective Actions“.

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