FDA Clarifies Sanitary Transportation Rule Waiver for Retail Food Establishments
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
  • As previously covered on this blog, on April 6, 2016, FDA published a final rule to implement sanitary food transportation requirements under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).  Click here for a complete copy of the final rule.  Click here for an FDA fact sheet summarizing the final rule, and click here for our summary of the rule and its implications for entities in the food industry.  In short, the final rule establishes sanitary transportation practices for covered entities addressing: (1) vehicles and transportation equipment; (2) transportation operations; (3) training; (4) records; and (5) waivers. The compliance date for most companies was April 2017.  Small businesses have until April 2018 to comply.
  • On April 5, 2017, FDA announced the publication of three waivers to the final Sanitary Transportation rule. The waivers are for businesses whose transportation operations are subject to existing regulatory controls at the federal, state or local levels, including one that waives certain requirements for restaurants, retail food establishments, and nonprofit food establishments. See previous blog coverage here.
  • On August 14, 2017, FDA issued guidance to clarify that a waiver to the Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food final rule (Sanitary Transportation rule) covers retail food establishments that sell food for humans, including those that sell both human and animal food, but does not apply to establishments that only sell food for animals.
  • We will continue to monitor and report on FDA’s activities in connection with the final Sanitary Transportation rule and other FSMA related activities.  
 

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