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Discussion with Nebraska Department of Agriculture - How FSMA Interacts with State Food and Feed Regulations
Members of the Nebraska Grain and Feed Association joined Nebraska Department of Agriculture staff to discuss the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and its relation to state food and feed regulations on July 2, 2019 in Lincoln.
Members of the Nebraska Grain and Feed Association joined Nebraska Department of Agriculture staff to discuss state food and feed regulations on July 2, 2019 in Lincoln.As the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) has hit full implementation,it was important to take a couple of hours and have frank conversations with our Nebraska Department of Agriculture who is the state's FSMA inspectors. We were able to talk about some of the challenges with implementation and concerns that we see in the future by “grey areas” in the regulations where guidances are still be written by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA). It was also important to have a conversation about the differences in facilities and processes within the industry and how FSMA impacts the different operations.
“This meeting was a good opportunity for the Association and Dept. of Ag to discuss what the industry is currently doing to comply with FSMA and explain the challenges we're seeing,” said David Prinz of Prinz Grain & Feed in West Point and NEGFA board member.
The meeting spurred NEGFA staff and the NEGFA FSMA team to look at our state feed regulations which were last updated in 2007. As FSMA guidances continue to be released and the industry gains a better feel for how the federal legislation is to be interpreted it will be of utmost importance for the industry to stay on top of how FSMA Regulations interact with Nebraska feed regulations and Nebraska food processing regulations. If the state regulations need to be updated, the industry will want to be part of that process as you, our members, know your operations best so that the safety of your products and the profitability of your business persists without burdensome and unnecessary recordkeeping.Those in attendance from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture included: Director Steve Wellman, Assistant Director Amelia Breinig, Chief Administrator Bob Storant, Feed Program Manager Steve Gramlich, AFRPS Coordinator Charlie Hubenka, Animal & Plant Health Protection Area Administrator Tammy Zimmerman, Deputy State Veterinarian Dr. Roger Dudley, NDA Laboratory Administrator Dr. Sally Flowers, and NASDA Food Safety Programs Manager Felicity Mejeris.
The NEGFA Feed Team representatives were Nathan Brabec of Louis Dreyfus in Norfolk and President of NEGFA Board; David Franzen of Commodity Solutions in Humphrey; Luke Hitchcock of Farmers Ranchers Cooperative in Ainsworth and newly elected board member; and David Prinz of Prinz Grain & Feed in West Point.
Learn More About Food Safety Modernization Act
Nebraska Department of Agriculture Feed Program Information
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