In November, American families impacted by foodborne illness will be speaking at a series of listening sessions around the country in support of a second set of proposed food safety rules. Officials from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will attend the six events sponsored by state departments of agriculture to hear feedback on the supplemental proposed rules that will direct implementation of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the sweeping overhaul of the nation’s food safety system enacted in 2011. After the first listening session, FDA will hold a public hearing on the new proposals on Nov.13 in College Park, Maryland.
FDA must issue seven final rules crucial to FSMA’s effectiveness by May 2016 to meet the terms of a legal settlement. This month’s meetings will focus on four of these rules: Produce Safety, Preventive Controls for Human Food, Preventive Controls for Animal Food, and the Foreign Supplier Verification Program.
Related: Families Touched by Foodborne Illness Ask Congress to Increase Food Safety Funding