Remarks for Dr. Barbara J. Masters, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service, at the Post-Harvest Salmonella Public Meeting on February 23, 2006, in Atlanta, GA

Introduction

Good morning. I am pleased to be here today to participate in this important meeting. I want to thank FSIS' Office of Policy, Program and Employee Development for hosting this meeting. It's no small challenge to organize a meeting of this magnitude, so thank you Dr. Engeljohn and your staff for putting this together.

I am especially delighted that we are able to netcast this meeting - allowing us to reach many more of our stakeholders who have an interest in this important topic.

Background

As you know, FSIS takes a farm-to-table approach to food safety. While most of our regulatory authority lies in plants, we realize that food safety begins before product reaches the processing or slaughter establishments.

We have so much information to share with you on the issue of Salmonella that we decided to divide these public meetings into two separate events.

At the pre-harvest public meeting last August, we talked about Salmonella trends and how prevalence in broilers and ground chicken was up. We discussed controlling Salmonella to the maximum extent practical at pre-harvest and the impact that has on the levels of Salmonella coming in to the plant. At this meeting, we will present the latest data and discuss in-plant efforts and solutions for combating Salmonella.

As we discussed in Athens, there are things that can be done before product reaches a plant; there are also things that can be done at the plant to decrease the prevalence of Salmonella. Likely many of these will be done in combination for optimal Salmonella control. The bottom line is however, the industry must make the changes, as an industry to control this organism! Just like there are things we can do before product reaches a plant, there are also things that can be done at the plant to avoid the prevalence of Salmonella.

The E. coli Model

As Dr. Raymond mentioned, we are aware that individual plants CAN meet the standards put in place for Salmonella. We know this because there are plants that consistently meet these standards.

As I mentioned in Athens and Dr. Raymond discussed, we are basing our Salmonella strategy on a model that we believe has been extremely successful. FSIS recently worked with the beef industry on the issue of E. coli. We conducted a risk assessment based on some outbreaks and recalls due to E. coli O157:H7.

After this, we asked all beef slaughter and processing establishments to reassess their HACCP plans. The industry rose to the challenge and we've seen a dramatic reduction in positive results in our regulatory sampling for this pathogen.

As Dr. Raymond stated, we've also seen reductions based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and foodborne illness relative to E. coli O157:H7. We believe that those reductions occurred in large part due to drastic industry changes and redesigned food safety systems based on the plants' reassessments. This is an industry wide initiative.

We also believe that the poultry industry can see similar changes if you apply a comparable model. I challenge you to look at your programs and use the data and what you will learn at this meeting to make changes that will significantly decrease the prevalence of Salmonella at your establishments.

We will also be issuing a compliance guideline from the pre-harvest meeting that you might find helpful. You do not need to wait on FSIS to require you to reassess your programs. You do not need to wait on FSIS to conduct a Food Safety Assessment. We are providing you general information today. You will learn about specific plant data you will begin receiving. It is up to you to use this information to make the necessary changes to your operations to control Salmonella in a way that works within your plant environment.

Options

There are different ways to control Salmonella. Plants are using a variety of interventions and everyone has a different idea on how to approach this challenge. We acknowledge that there is no one way to reduce Salmonella and we implore you to do whatever works best in your plant.

You have options on techniques to use for fighting Salmonella. At this meeting, you will hear about different preventative measures that can be taken in your establishments. We're providing you with the tools to make the changes.

No matter which measures you choose, you need to reassess and redesign your individual strategies.

Transparent Data

We have been conducting food safety assessments in the poultry industry. Dr. Ken Petersen will discuss our findings later this morning.

We've searched the literature and have that information to share.

All of the information you receive in the next two days will be made available for you on CD. We plan to be transparent with the data. Use information and supply it!

You will hear the word "transparent" throughout this meeting. We firmly believe that data should be a driving force for the changes that must be made.

Closing

As Dr. Raymond said, changes WILL be made to the way that we approach the issue of reducing the prevalence of Salmonella in poultry. These changes must occur to ensure that public health is protected and improved.

We expect to see extreme improvements in the coming months. We are confident that the poultry industry is up for the challenge. It is the entire industry that must accept this challenge and make the difference.

We look forward to working with your establishments as you implement new and improved plans to ensure these improvements take place. We appreciate so many of you joining us, whether in person or by net cast. Enjoy the rest of the meeting. And - I can't emphasize enough, take advantage of the information being shared. It's up to you to make the difference!