WASHINGTON – The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) released a notice of guidelines for collecting cell-cultured meat samples and how to send the products to laboratories for testing.

The notice provides instructions and responsibilities for officials collecting food contact surfaces and environmental swab samples at the facilities. It also provides inspectors with instructions for meetings with plant management throughout the collection of samples.

The agency stated that cell-cultured samples should be shipped to the FSIS Western Laboratory (WL) in Albany, Calif. FSIS is expected to ship cell-cultured food samples to the Eastern Laboratory (EL) in Athens, Ga., where they will be tested for microbiological, chemical residue, speciation testing and pathology.

FSIS said it would collect final product samples for testing with a volume of at least 60 grams to 453 grams (1 lb).

The US Food and Drug Administration and the FSIS jointly oversee the production of cultivated meat.

“Cell-cultured meat and poultry food products are subject to the same FSIS regulatory requirements and oversight authority as meat and poultry food products derived from the slaughter of amenable species,” FSIS previously stated in a directive.

Previously, Upside Foods and GOOD Meat, the cultivated meat division of Eat Just Inc., received a Grant of Inspection (GOI) from the USDA, getting the companies another step closer to full regulatory review.