The comment period for FSIS' Proposed Salmonella Framework for Raw Poultry is set to close on January 17, but there's still time to post comments. We'd like to encourage you to share this alert with your customers to encourage comments. 

Here is text you can share with your customers...

As a part of our participation with the American Pastured Poultry Producers Association, we have been notified of this Proposed Salmonella Framework on Raw Poultry from the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS). The foundation of this proposal is that FSIS wants to declare certain levels and/or serotypes of Salmonella detected on raw poultry  adulterants. “Adulterated” poultry could not be sold to consumers without first being turned into cooked products by the processors, even though thorough cooking by consumers would render them harmless. Very small fee-for-service processors that do not have access to cooking facilities would be left to condemn the “adulterated” poultry, regardless of ownership.

Why are we sharing this proposed change in the Code of Federal Regulations with you? It’s an important document that, if enacted, could grant government overreach in the name of food safety with no discernable public health benefits and creates greater hindrances to our access to small-scale pastured poultry.

FSIS is very interested in consumer input and gives their concerns great weight, perhaps even greater than farmers and processors, who FSIS perceives to have mostly financial concerns with this Proposed Rule. To read the Proposal, click here.

The deadline for commenting is Friday, January 17, 2025.

Potential Issues that can arise if the Proposed Rule is enacted::

• Loss of Access to Local Poultry to Consumers: Increased Production Costs and Liability Insurance on the 30 remaining small scale fee-for-service slaughter facilities in the US could result in an estimated 40% of facilities closing. If farmers don’t have access to an inspected processor, they likely will have to discontinue their own poultry production for their customers as these facilities are few and far between.
• Increased Pricing for Local Poultry Consumers: Processors that do continue operations after this Rule is enacted will definitely have increased costs due to increased testing by FSIS, holding of product, and product potentially being condemned that doesn’t pass the rigorous testing. These costs will, of course, need to be passed on down to consumers. 
• Loss of Private Ownership of Food: This Proposal gives the USDA the ability to declare “adulterated” birds that were destined for a homesteader’s own consumption if the birds were slaughtered at a very small fee-for-service USDA inspected plant. There is a Bill (H. R. 9251, “Increasing Small-Scale Poultry Processing Opportunities Act) recently introduced to Congress that would address this issue but the process can take years.
• Reduced Access to Chemical-Free Poultry: In order to meet the requirements set forth in the Proposed Testing program, plants will need to add multiple chemical intervention steps to reduce and eliminate the natural biological bacteria load on the poultry carcasses.  
• Reduced National Food Security: Loss of both farms and processors will undoubtedly occur with the enactment of this Proposed Rule which is not in the benefit of our national security. Just four years ago, every American realized how vitally important every local farmer and processor was. They feed our nation every day, but especially in times of crises. 

To comment, GO Here:   Regulations.gov

You can write your own comment, or submit a variation of the following:

“ As a consumer of locally raised and slaughtered poultry I am against the Proposed Salmonella Framework on Raw Poultry. This proposed solution is not effective at addressing the concerns of consumers for safe or clean poultry. Please go back and listen to the stakeholder comments to draft a new solution that allows consumers to maintain private ownership of their poultry and ensures access to non-chemically sterilized poultry if desired.”