SEMA_________________________________

SOUTHEASTERN MEAT ASSOCIATION
P.O. Box 620777; Oviedo, FL 32762 Phone: 407-365-5661

Business; “A-Maze or A-Maze-ing”
Mark your calendar!
The SEMA Convention
Brasstown Valley Resort, Young Harris, GA. June 11th & 12th

• Thirty-five exhibitors will be on hand exhibiting the latest in trends and technology.
• David Long-Daniels, Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Atlanta Labor and Employment Practice, has received numerous recognitions, including "Georgia's Legal Elite," by Georgia Trend magazine (2006, 2008 and 2009) and Georgia Super Lawyer’s magazine (2009 and 2010). David represents clients across the country in complex labor and employment matters. David will update us on the new Legislative laws and how they may or will affect our business and he will touch on things you need to know about your company handbook.
• Terry Vargo, Senior V.P., Chief Lending Officer at the Citizens Bank of Florida will give an economic overview and share how in this economy companies and bank can work together. *Immigration is an issue in the south and David Barron of Epstein Becker & Green (EBG) practices in the area of US and global immigration law. It is a new compliance environment, get the latest information on I-9’s, E-Verify, Types of Companies Targeted, Enforcement; criminal prosecutions of companies and managers, and what you should do if ICE agents show up at your business.
• If you grow your business it looks like you will need to be Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) certified. There will be a presentation on GFSI and how it will affect your business. In May 2000, following a number of food safety scares, a group of international retailer CEOs identified the need to enhance food safety, ensure consumer protection and to strengthen consumer confidence. They launched the Global Food Safety Initiative which sets requirements for food safety schemes through a benchmarking process in order to improve cost efficiency throughout the food supply chain.
• Howard Eubanks of FOSS will give us new ways to maximize yields.
• In today’s world you should be using the internet as a marketing tool. Jimmy Puckett of Spinen will tell us how to make our web sites work for us. He will also give us other internet marketing tools - which ones are the best and what to stay away from.
• Product development and packaging will be Susan Edwards from Cryovac topic. Susan will share what consumers are looking for in products and packaging. Learn how your product will stand-out among the rest.

Convention information and registration is available on the SEMA convention page.

Brasstown Valley Resort:
The Resort is nestled among the North Georgia Mountains. There is much to do on the 503 acres resort including golf, tennis, horseback riding, stream or pond fishing, outdoor and indoor swimming pool, a state-of-the-art fitness center and over 9 miles of hiking trails or enjoy a luxurious spa experience at the Equani Spa, a full-service spa. In the surrounding area nature lovers will enjoy rock climbing, white water and tube rafting, canoeing, kayaking, and guided lake tours.

ICE to Inspect 180 Employers in the South

On Tuesday, March 2, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that it had sent 180 notices of inspections (NOIs) to employers in Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. At least 30 NOIs have been sent to employers in Tennessee and another 30 or so to employers located in southern and central Alabama. ICE has not yet disclosed the targeted employers’ names. NOIs notify employers that ICE will be inspecting their employment verification records to determine whether they are complying with all employment eligibility verification laws and regulations. Also, the notices are accompanied by subpoenas requiring employers to provide a long list of documents such as:

• A list of current and terminated employees with hired and termination dates, names, social security numbers, and dates of birth;
• Quarterly wage and hour reports and/or payroll data for all employees covering the period of inspection;
• Quarterly tax statements; and
• All correspondence with the Social Security Administration, including “no-match” letters.

Inspections are one of the most powerful tools the federal government has to enforce employment and immigration laws. In July 2009, ICE sent similar notices to 652 businesses nationwide. And an additional 1,000 NOIs were sent to employers associated with critical infrastructure in November. There is no doubt that ICE is making a renewed effort to focus on holding employers accountable for their hiring practices. We expect more NOIs to be issued in the near future. We encourage employers to conduct internal I-9 audits and put their internal immigration compliance programs in order.

Article provided by Hector Chichoni, Epstein Becker & Green, P.C., in Miami, Florida

Nutritional Labeling for Restaurants

Under the health care bill passed by the House on Sunday, the Food and Drug Administration will have to create a national standard for menu nutrition labeling, which will apply to chains with 20 or more locations. Panera Bread will become the first restaurant chain to voluntarily post calories on menus in all its U.S. company-owned locations, including jurisdictions without menu-labeling mandates.

Nat’l Restaurant Assoc. Smart Brief Mag

Associations Working Together

AAMP has developed a webpage specifically for the validation issue. The specific address is www.aamp.com/Validation.php.

The website specifically contains an overview of validation (AAMP Newsletters – 10/1/08 & 4/1/10), template letters (generic and detailed) that they can use to submit comments, and FSIS information. All the information on the website is open to the general public (i.e., AAMP members and non-members).

AAMP is waiving the traditional copyright rules they follow with the newsletters for the two posted newsletters. If you would like to send them (electronically or paper format) to affiliate processor members or colleagues in the industry, feel free to do so. Thus far, AAMP has requested an extension to the comment period, but has not gotten a written grant of extension. Therefore, it is strongly advised that comments be submitted by April 19, 2010. Submit your comments to the email address DraftValidationGuideComments@fsis.usda.gov or to the Docket Clerk, USDA, FSIS, Room 2-2127, 5601 Sunnyside Avenue, Beltsville, MD 20705. After April 19th, FSIS will begin its review on the comments it receives and its process of deciding how it will proceed with respect to the validation of HACCP systems.

Note: F.S.I.S. plans to require processors to include both scientific support and in-plant verification

NPB – Web site for Retailers

The National Pork Board is helping retailers sell pork with a new retail Web site at porkretail.org.

According to a news release from the organization, the site includes:

• Generic seasonal point-of-sale materials, including a meat case sign, recipe brochure and poster.
• Retailers can print off the PDF on the site, or order larger quantities.
• Industry information.
• Research, including trends in consumer shopping habits, sales and volume trends and creative
  merchandising opportunities.

NPB promises to continue adapting and updating the site "as retailers' needs change and grow."

Meatingplace Magazine

SEMA Member News

Primus Builders proudly announces the promotion of Matthew Hirsch to Vice President of Sales.
Hirsch started his career with Primus Builders in 2007 as Director of Business Development. He has been responsible for setting strategic sales targets, identifying new business opportunities within Primus’ niche market focus, and managing key client accounts. In his new role as Vice President of Sales, Hirsch will continue to provide company leadership. He will focus continually on sales strategies, overseeing existing accounts, and expanding Primus’ offerings in both domestic and international markets.

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The work of today is the history of tomorrow, and we are its makers."
--Juliette Gordon Low,
founded the Girl Scouts on March 12, 1912
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FSIS Notices Issued in April

Docket No. FSIS-2010-0008 (Mar 8, 2010) |
Improving Tracing Procedures for E. coli O157:H7 Positive Raw Beef Product

(FSIS) is announcing that it will hold a public meeting on March 10, 2010 to discuss Agency procedures for identifying suppliers of source material used to produce raw beef product that FSIS has found positive for Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157:H7. FSIS is evaluating the effectiveness of its policies and procedures in responding to findings that raw beef is positive for E. coli O157:H7, and whether the Agency takes the appropriate steps to identify source materials used to produce the product and to identify other products derived from those source materials. One conclusion reached by FSIS thus far is that the Agency must improve its procedures for assessing the conditions at suppliers that may have resulted in the positive product.

FSIS has also concluded that it should conduct additional verification activities at suppliers that produced source materials for raw beef product that FSIS has found positive for E. coli O157:H7. Therefore, FSIS intends to issue new instructions to Enforcement, Investigations, and Analysis Officers (EIAOs) to conduct additional verification activities at suppliers in response to positive E. coli O157:H7 results. These instructions are intended to assist EIAOs is assessing conditions at the suppliers, including whether source materials used to produce the positive raw beef product may have been produced during high event periods. High event periods are production periods during which an establishment’s sampling and testing program detects a series of positive test results that indicates a systemic failure or breakdown of process controls. If FSIS personnel determine that the subject source materials were produced during high event periods, the Agency may determine that additional product is implicated by the positive result. FSIS will issue these new instructions after the public meeting.

In addition, FSIS will seek input from meeting participants on ways to improve Agency procedures for identifying product that may be positive for E. coli O157:H7 or you may submit on or before May 7, 2010.

Docket No. FSIS 2008-0025 (Mar 25, 2010) | PDF
Notification, Documentation, and Recordkeeping Requirements for Inspected Establishments

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to implement provisions of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 by adopting regulations that require official establishments to
promptly notify the appropriate District Office that an adulterated or misbranded meat or poultry product has entered commerce; require official establishments to prepare and maintain current procedures for the recall of meat and poultry products produced and shipped by the establishment; and require official establishments to document each reassessment of the establishment's process control plans, that is, its Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point plans.
Comments due on or before May 24, 2010.

All notices and directives are available at www.fsis.usda.gov/Regulations_&_Policies/index.asp

FSIS-ASK

Question: If an exporter requests that Inspection Program Personnel (IPP) certify imported casings for export (without a mark of inspection), do the IPP need to verify that the casings originated from animals that were slaughtered under an inspection system equivalent to the U.S. system before signing FSIS Form 9060-18 Animal Casings Export Certificate for Countries Requiring Ante-mortem, Post-mortem, and Sound and Clean Statements?

Answer: No, FSIS does not expect imported casings that are to be certified for export by IPP with FSIS Form 9060-18 to have been derived from animals slaughtered under a foreign inspection system that is equivalent to the U.S. system. However, IPP are to review the documentation accompanying the shipment presented for export, and that documentation is to support them making the following statement on the Form 9060-18:
I certify that the animal casings specified hereon were accompanied by documentation showing that they were derived from healthy animals which received ante-mortem and post mortem veterinary inspection at the time of slaughter, and are clean and sound. While in establishments subject to USDA inspection, said casings have been handled in a sanitary manner and were not subject to contagion prior to exportation.

Exporters are to present such documentation to IPP at the time the shipments are presented for export certification. The documentation is to be in English and signed by a government official of the country from which the casings were imported. Also, IPP are to verify that any specific requirements of the country to which the casings are to be exported (as set out in the Export Library) are met, and that any labeling used does not bear a USDA mark of inspection.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Open Gov page is now available at usda.gov/open. You are invited to share your ideas about: Transparency, Participation, Collaboration, and Innovation.
Share your ideas and discuss USDA’s proposals.

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Things to Ponder . . . . . . . . .
Patience and perseverance have a magical effect
before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."
--John Quincy Adams, 6th U.S. president
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS