The USDA plans to reduce some Salmonella testing on poultry products in the coming fiscal year, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
In an example of 33 pages plan for the 2024 budget yearthe USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) outlines the number of samples it plans to test. The agency says most of the cuts are happening because it already has enough data to study.
“It is important to note that this document reflects the agency’s plan, and there may be a difference between the number of samples expected to be analyzed and the total number of samples analyzed within the fiscal year. Various variables may impact the plan as the fiscal year progresses,” the plan document said.
“FSIS laboratories perform whole genome sequencing (WGS) on all foodborne pathogens isolated and confirmed from FSIS regulated products. When product samples test positive for bacterial pathogens, FSIS works with federal partners to use WGS data for regulatory and public health purposes. The information collected by WGS helps FSIS detect and investigate foodborne illness outbreaks, identify potential harboring cases, and identify unique genes, including antimicrobial resistance genes.”
The FSIS qualifies its approach to testing for Salmonella by saying that some Salmonella microorganisms are less likely to result in foodborne illness. Some consumer advocacy groups have previously challenged the agency’s position and want to test for more species of Salmonella than the agency is proposing, but Consumer Reports says the new sampling plan makes sense in many ways.
Michael Hansen works at Consumer Reports and is a member of the National Advisory Council on Microbiological Criteria for Foods. The council provides impartial scientific advice and recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services on public health issues related to the safety of the U.S. food supply.
Hansen says it is important to note that FSIS can now better test for Salmonella and Campylobacter.
“As science has advanced and the price of whole genome sequencing has fallen, they are testing for more and more species of Salmonella,” says Hansen.
That’s good news, because a single chicken sample can be contaminated with numerous species of Salmonella, some of which are more likely to cause serious illness in humans.
Hansen also said it is good news that the agency is making the results public for further analysis. He said another positive in the sampling plan is that the agency is further investigating Campylobacter contamination.
“Current and future efforts include exploring the use of genomic data to attribute Salmonella and Campylobacter diseases to foods, to understand pathogen adaptability, persistence, and pathogenicity, and to use subtyping data to assess diversity and understand ubiquity of pathogen subtypes in regulated products. These efforts will also build on the efforts of public health, regulatory, and research partners in support of FSIS research priorities,” the sampling plan states.
“. . . In FY 2023, FSIS worked with a contractor to develop an allele coding scheme for the naming of both Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. The allele codes provide terminology suitable for reporting and allow comparison of FSIS isolate sequences, identifying repetitive or persistent subtypes. The Campylobacter allele codes are publicly available in the company-specific sampling datasets,” according to the sampling plan.
The sampling plan eliminates testing in some cases, but the agency says that’s because it has enough data from previous years to address illnesses resulting from certain types of contamination.
“FSIS will continue to examine Salmonella count analysis of multiple types of poultry products to support the agency’s comprehensive approach to reducing Salmonella illnesses associated with poultry products. Because the presence of Salmonella and the amount of Salmonella microorganisms can influence the likelihood of illness, FSIS will continue to investigate how quantification can be integrated into this approach. In addition, as emerging science suggests that not all Salmonella are equally likely to cause disease in humans, FSIS will investigate Salmonella serotypes and virulence factors that pose the greatest risk to public health,” the sampling plan states.
One part of the sampling plan that Hansen finds difficult is the cut back on testing ground chicken and turkey. The FSIS plans to cut the number of tests by half, which Hansen said is unfortunate because such chicken products are the most likely to be contaminated.
That’s what the agency plans to do
- Suspend exploratory sampling of mechanically separated turkey and chicken products (-300 samples; implement October 1, 2023); FSIS has collected sufficient data on these products for analysis.
- Suspend exploratory sampling of chicken halves and quarters (-120 samples; implement October 1, 2023); FSIS has collected sufficient data on these products for analysis.
- Reduce Campylobacter analysis of all poultry products to the minimum number of samples required to estimate prevalence (-13,600 tests; implementation October 1, 2023), as FSIS considers next steps for the Campylobacter policy.
- Reduce sample scheduling for ground chicken and turkey products by 50% to align with routine sampling orders for carcasses and parts (-2,000 samples; implementation January 1, 2024).
Even more key points from the sampling plan for the 2024 financial year
The FSIS has already begun an effort to reduce Salmonella in certain raw, breaded chicken products. The 2024 plan addresses some of those efforts. The agency plans to implement verification testing approaches for raw, not ready-to-eat (NRTE) breaded, stuffed chicken products.
Other items from the poultry sampling plan for FY 2024 include:
- Reducing the number of tests for Salmonella and Campylobacter in ground and other reduced chickens (not mechanically separated) from 2,500 to 1,250;
- Reducing testing of turkey carcasses from 1,730 to 700;
- Reducing ground turkey and other ground turkeys (not mechanically separated) from 1,500 to 750 and
- Eliminating the exploratory research on mechanically separated turkeys.
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