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On Dec. 13, 2013, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued Notice 81-13 to clarify and expand its routine trim sampling programs. Inspection program personnel (IPP) were to implement this notice beginning Jan. 5, 2014, with updating the plant profile so that sampling tasks can be appropriately scheduled.

A bipartisan group of 13 Senators sent a letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack supporting the Act.

For “prerequisite programs”, there seems to be no single definition that covers all of them.

Whether or not the August 2013 proposed rule to mandate prominent labeling of raw “mechanically tenderized” beef is implemented by USDA-FSIS, producers of non-intact raw beef products (including ground) need to consider the raw materials used when assessing their food-safety system.

At the first negotiating session on a final version of the new $500 billion U.S. farm bill, several lawmakers said COOL should be revised or repealed.

On August 28th, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) published a Notice in the Federal Register announcing proposed changes to the agency’s Salmonella sampling program for raw beef.

On June 10, 2013, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a proposed rule in the Federal Register: “Descriptive Designation for Needle- or Blade-Tenderized (Mechanically Tenderized) Beef Products.”

The amendment, offered by Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), passed by voice vote with a bipartisan majority.

On May 22, 2013, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held a joint public meeting

On May 8, 2013, all small and very small establishments were required to have a written recall plan (9 CFR § 418.3).