	Background

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has monitored numerous recalls of meat and poultry products sold in the United States. The recalls have involved beef products possibly contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, beef and poultry products possibly contaminated with Salmonella , and canned meat products possibly contaminated by botulism. A recall is "a firm's voluntary removal of distributed meat or poultry products from commerce when there is reason to believe that such products are adulterated or misbranded...."
Recalls received heightened attention in February 2008, when USDA announced the largest-ever recall—143.4 million pounds of fresh and frozen beef products from a California slaughterer-processor. The Class II recall was in response to evidence that nonambulatory ("downer") cattle had been mistreated and periodically slaughtered for food, in violation of a federal humane slaughter law and of meat safety regulations, respectively. Recalls raise issues of consumer confidence in the meat industry and questions of the adequacy of the USDA oversight. This report provides an overview of USDA's statutory authority to regulate meat, poultry, and their products. Specifically, the report discusses the requirements of USDA relating to inspections and import regulations, as well as USDA's role in product recalls, including its power to seize and detain products in commerce. Information about recent recalls and analysis of recall data can be found in the Appendix of the report. Current Statutory Authority to Regulate Meat and Poultry Products

USDA does not currently have statutory authority to issue mandatory recalls of contaminated products. Rather, recalls of meat and poultry products are voluntary actions taken by food companies. If an establishment conducts the recall, FSIS provides assistance and monitors the recall. FSIS oversight begins when it learns of a potential recall. The Recall Committee makes a preliminary evaluation to determine whether to recommend a recall of the product. The press release and a photo of the product are posted on FSIS' website, and the information is disseminated to stakeholders (including Congress), news media, and public health officials. Recall notification reports are issued for all classes of recalls and are also posted on the FSIS website. FSIS issues a recall termination report after it completes effectiveness checks and determines that all reasonable efforts have been made to recall the product.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has monitored numerous recalls of meat and poultry products sold in the United States. The recalls have involved beef products possibly contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, beef and poultry products possibly contaminated with Salmonella, and canned meat products possibly contaminated by botulism. These recalls raise issues of consumer confidence in the meat industry and questions about the adequacy of the USDA oversight of these products.
In February 2008, USDA announced the largest-ever recall, of 143.4 million pounds of fresh and frozen beef products from a California slaughterer-processor. The Class II recall (meaning only a remote possibility of adverse health effects) was in response to evidence that nonambulatory ("downer") cattle had been mistreated and periodically slaughtered for food, in violation of a federal humane slaughter law and of meat safety regulations, respectively.
Following these recalls, Congress included in the 2008 farm law (P.L. 110-246) new requirements for establishments to promptly notify USDA about potentially adulterated or mislabeled meat and poultry products and also to develop and maintain plans for conducting a recall. Other recall-related issues for Congress include whether USDA should be given mandatory recall authority; whether notification and/or recall planning rules should be more prescriptive; and whether new recordkeeping and product traceability requirements are needed.
Currently, USDA does not have authority to mandate a recall of meat and poultry products. Rather, USDA, through FSIS, monitors food companies' recalls. When FSIS learns of a potential recall, it convenes a recall committee, which makes recommendations based on information such as any pertinent production and distribution data provided by the company. Once the company initiates a recall, FSIS immediately issues a press release to notify the public, posts it on its website, and provides information directly to stakeholders—including Congress, the media, federal, state, and local officials, and constituents—via e-mail and faxes. At the conclusion of the recall, FSIS conducts an effectiveness check to determine whether all appropriate parties were properly notified and all reasonable efforts were made to retrieve, destroy, or return the recalled product to the firm.
This report provides an overview of USDA's authority to regulate meat, poultry, and their products. Specifically, it discusses the requirements of USDA inspections and import regulations, as well as USDA's role in product recalls. This report also addresses some of the issues that arise when considering possible changes to recall authority that may be of interest as the 112th Congress may consider related food safety issues. The Appendix of this report provides information regarding recent recalls and the significance of the recall data.