SEMA_________________________________ SOUTHEASTERN MEAT ASSOCIATION FEBRUARY, 2003 VOLUME 18, No. 2
Kerri Harris, executive director of the International HACCP Alliance,
participated in the PRESIDENT BUSH TO PROPOSE RECORD-LEVEL FUNDING
FOR AGRICULTURE Secretary Ann M. Veneman announced that President Bush will
seek record-level support for USDA’s meat and poultry food safety
programs as well as increase efforts to strengthen agricultural protection
systems in his FY 2004 budget. USDA MARKS PROGRESS ON BSE PREVENTION ACTIONS STEPS The U.S. Department of Agriculture more than tripled the number of cattle it tested for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) during the last fiscal year and has made significant steps on other prevention measures aimed at keeping the disease from entering the United States. “We remain vigilant at strengthening programs to keep BSE out of this country,” said Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman. “Our surveillance level far exceeds international testing standards and is just one component of a multi-faceted regulatory and compliance system that is keeping the United States free of BSE.” WATER RETENTION RULE IS NOW IN EFFECT A rule limiting the amount of water that can be retained in raw poultry and meat products as a result of post-evisceration processing took effect on January 9, according to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. Under the rule, the carcasses and their parts will not be permitted to retain water, unless it is an unavoidable consequence of the processes used to meet food safety requirements. Additionally, establishments must disclose the percentage of water in the product labeling. Establishments that have data showing that there is no water being retained in their products can write a letter indicating this fact, and then choose not to include a retained water statement on their product labels. The final rule was originally published by FSIS in 2001, but was delayed one year to allow the poultry and meat industry sufficient time to implement the change in plants. It applies to product processed on or after January 9, not to product processed before then and held in storage. FSIS TECHNICAL SERVICE CENTER POSTS The FSIS Technical Service Center posted the first set of “Frequently Asked Questions” to the Agency’s web site. The FAQ’s represent a selected summary of thousands of questions answered over the past five years, including those received from FSIS inspectors and circuit supervisors, plant owners and operators, industry representatives, officials representing other federal and state agencies, and foreign government officials. Topics include HACCP, SSOP’s processing, slaughter, labeling, appeals, NR’s ISP codes and export. You can access the FAQ’s at: www.fsis.usda.gov/OFO/TSC/faq11.htm. NEW, UPDATED BEEF VALUE CUTS GUIDELINE The R&D Ranch team at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is now offering an in-depth Beef Value Cuts Guide, including an instruction manual, brochure, a training video and a comprehensive CD-ROM and multi-tab three-ring binder. To order copies of Beef Value Cuts materials, contact the NCBA Customer Service Department at 800-368-3138 and request by item number as listed below: · Item 24620: The Beef Value Cuts Cutting Manual NEW WEAPON AGAINST LISTERIA Texas A & M University researchers say a new product called acidified
calcium sulfate shows promise in decontaminating the surface of cooked
food products. They say it not only kills Processed food products can be contaminated by Listeria that comes from the environment or from employees in meat-processing plants. TYSON FOODS LAUNCES CAMPAIGN TO PROMOTE Tyson Foods has launched a $100 million fully integrated marketing campaign. The new campaign is a signal that Tyson has fully integrated into its chicken operation the beef and pork production from its acquisition of IBP, Inc. in 2001. In January Tyson introduced a full-line of deli meats, featuring 31 products in all, made from beef, turkey, chicken and ham. In February, Tyson will launch a 14-item line of beef and pork roasts plus pork tenderloins and hams. Additionally, the company will roll out a new eight-item line of Tyson branded individually frozen steaks and pork chops. RETIREMENT COMMUNITIES NOT GETTING OLDER An ever-growing business is the continuing-care retirement communities (CCRC). A major appeal of CCRC’s is that they satisfy the needs of residents as they age and decline in health. CCRC’s offer both assisted-living programs and skilled-nursing–care programs, to which residents can move as the need arises. The growth in the elderly population has fueled the construction of more retirement communities. According to the AARP as of 2000 there were 50,000 CCRC’s nationwide, serving 625,000 seniors—a potential gold mine more foodservice companies are rushing to tap with programs crafted for an increasingly discerning clientele. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were approximately 11.5 million people over the age of 75 living in the United States in 2000. The number is predicted to climb to more than 25 million by 2020. NUMBER OF CATTLE ON FEED SHRINKS Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 10.6 million head on January 1, according to the Agriculture Department’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. The inventory was eight percent below January 1, 2002, and 10 percent below January 1, 2001. IRRADIATION—THE NEW WAVE Irradiation is coming. We are now seeing it in both the foodservice and retail industry. The key to turning the perception of irradiation is education. As the use of irradiated products increases in the foodservice and retail industries, operators surely will require additional help educating a wary public and allaying their fears. While printed material should be available to distribute in restaurants and stores, customer service personnel must be prepared to address any questions customers might have. Almost without question, restaurateurs and retail outlets will require assistance in the educational process. The USDA, as well as organizations like the NRA and International Food Safety Council, should help to make information available to operators, who could in turn inform their staffs and eventually their customers. EMPLOYEE CELL PHONE USE CAN CREATE LEGAL RISK With many states and municipalities passing laws restricting the use of cell phones while driving, there may be new legal implications for employers. According to the law firm Alaniz and Schraeder, LLP, employers have recently been found liable for damages caused by an employee’s accident in a personal vehicle because the employee was on the phone conducting business. In many cases, employers find themselves without insurance coverage because the accident involves the employee’s personal vehicle and is excluded from most general liability policies. The law firm suggests that to minimize liability, companies may want to implement new personnel policies restricting employees from using cell phones for business while driving any vehicle. Secondly, firms should contact their insurance agent or broker and discuss how such a claim would be handled and if additional coverage is warranted. Management should also check to see is there are new local or state laws restricting cell phone use while driving to ensure that employees are in compliance. OUR CONVENTION IS COMING!!!! Mark Your Calendars!!! SEMA CONVENTION June 13-15, 2003 Exhibit Setup June 12 from 4 p.m. on UPCOMING EVENTS AND SEMINARS February 4-5, 2003 Chilton Consulting Group HACCP Workshop February 17-19, 2003 ABC Research Corp. Technical Seminar March 2-5, 2003 NMA MEATXPO’03 July 9-13, 2003 North Carolina Meat Processors Annual Meeting THINGS TO PONDER……………………. Ever notice that the people who are late are often much jollier than the people who have to wait for them???????????????? WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBER!! Nu Products Seasoning Co. – Kim Adrian; Southeast Regional
Manager Nu Products Seasoning Co… is a food ingredient company based in South Hackensack, NJ, which has been dedicated to supplying the processed food industry for over 30 years. With a dedicated staff of food chemists and technologists, Nu Products has the capability to create customer specific seasoning formulae. We also can draw from an extensive library of in-house seasoning blends for quick customer response to get your new products development projects off the ground. We take pride in working with our customers closely to make sure that any project that is undertaken can be taken to market with the shortest possible time. We have an excellent R & D team that has the ability to custom design any seasoning flavor system. Kim Adrian is the Southeast Regional Manager located in Northeastern Florida. She is dedicated to treating each customer as her only customer. She can be reached at the above numbers. Nu Products is an OU Kosher certified company for parve, dairy, meat and Passover production.
Cryovac – Sealed Air - Ron Brown, Local Representative
The CRYOVAC food packaging division of Sealed Air is a global leader in the development of sophisticated packaging systems and materials that help to make safe and efficient distribution possible for perishable food products in the supermarket, food processing and food service industries. Customers throughout the world benefit from Cryovac’s food and protective packaging technologies. As a customer of Cryovac, you have access to the industry’s most experienced team of packaging professionals and its most comprehensive line of protective, preservation and presentation packaging materials and systems. For more information on Cryovac call 800.845.34356 or one of your local representatives. Call: 800.662.9335 Ron Brown, ext 7961
|