In late July, the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) developed a new proposed rule to reduce Salmonella in raw poultry products.

The agency stated it would establish final product standards to keep levels of Salmonella at or above 10 colony-forming units (CFU) per g/ml and any detectable level of at least one of the Salmonella serotypes of public health significance from entering commerce.

FSIS’ proposed rule will focus on the Salmonella serotypes of public health significance identified for raw chicken carcasses, chicken parts and comminuted chicken, which are Enteritidis, Typhimurium, and I,4,[5],12:I:- ; and for raw comminuted turkey are Hadar, Typhimurium and Muenchen. Officials have focused on these six serotypes because they cause most illnesses.

Around the time of the proposed change in the FSIS policy, Emilio Esteban, USDA undersecretary for food safety, discussed the reason for the changes. Esteban also explained what poultry establishments must do to comply with the new guidelines if the final rule passes.

He said the poultry industry will have to examine birds pre-harvest. Esteban said FSIS does not have jurisdiction in this part of the supply chain but will make guidance and recommendations.

“We know there are things you can do with the water, with the feed, with the way you raise the animals, the environment and vaccination that will affect the quality of the product that is presented to the slaughter plant,” Esteban said.

Once at the plant, the second component comes into play. FSIS will ask plants to document their statistical process control and whether they have a way to monitor it.

The third component from FSIS establishes final product standards to prevent raw chicken carcasses, chicken parts, ground chicken and ground turkey products that contain any type of Salmonella at or above 10 colony-forming units (CFU) per g/ml and any detectable level of at least one of the Salmonella serotypes of public health significance from entering commerce.

FSIS officials clarified that establishments must have both components to be an adulterant. If establishments have one or the other, it would be acceptable to move the product forward in processing.

“If you do well in component two, and you’re buying good quality chickens in component one, component three should not be an issue,” Esteban said.

Esteban noted that the statistical process control (SPC) monitoring methods will continue to be shared electronically with FSIS.

The proposal for the rule was published on Aug. 7. The agency extended the comment period until Nov. 7 for any stakeholders who want to leave a note in the Federal Register. Before that deadline, Esteban discussed what FSIS plans to do to inform the industry and the public about the proposed rule changes. He stated that FSIS wants to have a couple of webinars or other meetings to explain to everybody the risk assessments and logic for why the agency decided to take this step.

“I want to do it together with industry,” Esteban said. “Ultimately, consumers, industry and government, we all have a role to play in safety.”

Emilio Esteban, USDA undersecretary for food safety. (Source: Christophe Paul for USDA)

Approximately 1.35 million human infections occur from Salmonella bacteria each year in the United States, according to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). FSIS also estimated 125,000 chicken-associated and almost 43,000 turkey-associated illnesses occur every year.

Since 2021, FSIS has taken other steps, including starting activities to gather data and information, to inform the framework of this proposed rule. Some of the actions FSIS took include using the National Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Food to provide guidance on types of microbiological criteria the agency might use to better prevent Salmonella infections associated with poultry products.

The agency created a risk profile for pathogenic Salmonella subtypes in poultry, which helped develop two quantitative risk assessments. It also conducted an exploratory sampling program for young chicken carcasses to generate microbial data and add quantification to FSIS’ Salmonella testing program.

Esteban also explained that if the rule is finalized, high-volume establishments would be required to comply with these proposed requirements for one year. Medium-volume establishments would have two years to meet the proposed requirements, and low and very low-volume establishments would receive three years to comply with new FSIS rules.

“Ultimately, it’s going to be a phasing approach because we realize that not everyone has the same resources to get there,” Esteban said. “It’s not just a magic wand. It’s part of a process.”

Esteban emphasized that he wants to collaborate with the poultry processing industry to bring a safe poultry product to retailers and consumers around the United States.

“Our real hope is that this opens formal lines of discussion with the industry, and we work together with them — and not against them but with them — to get a better solution,” Esteban said.

Industry response

The National Chicken Council (NCC) provided its response to the proposed rule to reduce Salmonella in raw poultry products after reviewing FSIS’ proposed rule. NCC said the rule would be unnecessary, raise costs for producers and consumers and lead to an “extraordinary amount of food waste with no impact on public health.”

“NCC and our member companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars and have worked for decades to develop and refine best practices to reduce Salmonella and protect public health,” said Gary Kushner, interim president of NCC.

The NCC cited data from the FSIS showing that 97% of whole birds and 93% of chicken parts tested negative for Salmonella at a plant over the last year.

The association said 31 CDC Salmonella illness outbreak investigations were linked to food in the last five years, and one involved chicken.

“We remain committed to further reducing Salmonella and fully support changes in food safety regulations that are based on sound science, robust data, and are demonstrated to positively impact public health,” Kushner said. “However, we are concerned this proposal is not based on any of those. Instead of sound science and robust data, the proposed rule continuously references agenda-driven, activist organizations to substantiate these sweeping changes.”

Kushner said NCC and others in the chicken industry attempted to engage with FSIS for two years during the formulation of the proposed Salmonella Framework but felt their output was “largely disregarded.”

“There is no silver bullet or one-size-fits-all approach to food safety, which is why we employ a multi-stage strategy,” he said. “Passing a law or regulation to fight bacteria will not magically make it disappear. This proposal will raise the price of chicken and cause millions of pounds of safe-to-eat, if properly prepared, chicken to be sent to landfills rather than dinner tables — an unconscionable thought given there are 44 million Americans who are food insecure.”

Other concerns raised by the NCC included the requirement of holding raw chicken for days while waiting for test results to come back, which would impact the product’s shelf life.

Another issue NCC mentioned was the impact on product flow throughout the plant. Salmonella testing may affect the flow of birds to the plant for processing, which could negatively impact the health and welfare of the birds. The trade association said the proposed rule “drastically underestimates the cost to the industry whether it’s testing, holding, diverting product or other factors.

NCC said the FSIS shouldn’t provide guidance to industry on how products should be lotted, what data they will accept to substantiate the size of a lot or any other clarification.

“This will have a disproportionately negative impact on small and very small establishments and potentially drive them out of business entirely,” the NCC said of the agency’s interference.