On November 15th, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a final rule on food traceability designed to facilitate faster identification and rapid removal of potentially contaminated food from the market, resulting in fewer foodborne illnesses and/or deaths.
Foods subject to the final rule requirements appear on the Food Traceability List (FTL). The FTL includes fresh cut fruits and vegetables, shell eggs, and nut butters, as well as certain fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, ready-to-eat deli salads, cheeses, and seafood products.
At the core of the final rule is a requirement that persons who manufacture, process, pack or hold food on the FTL maintain records including Key Data Elements (KDEs) related to Critical Tracking Events (CTEs). Covered firms and farms, retail food establishments and restaurants will be required to provide information to the FDA within 24 hours, or some reasonable time to which the FDA agrees.
FDA has stated that it worked to align the final rule with current industry best practices and covers domestic firms, retail food establishments, restaurants, and farms, as well as foreign firms and farms producing food for U.S. consumption.
FDA will hold an informational webinar on Wednesday, December 7, 2022, from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm (ET). During the webinar, the FDA will provide an overview of the final rule, including the foods and entities covered by the rule, explain the exemptions from the rule, and discuss the recordkeeping requirements of the rule. GCCA members interested in participating can click the following link to Register for the Webinar.
