The products might contain small glass particles.

Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulations represent a paradigm shift in how food is regulated in the United States to protect consumers from foodborne illness. The act and its corresponding regulations not only place more responsibility on food manufacturers, but also provide FDA with substantial new authority to use when inspecting facilities.

To the credit of FDA, a wealth of resources has been assembled to help processors develop and implement a plan to come into compliance with the Preventive Controls rules. For example, the agency created a Food Safety Plan Builder to assist owners/operators of food facilities with the development of food safety plans that are specific to their facilities and has published several guidance documents related to implementing Food Safety Modernization Act.

It’s an unfortunate fact that food recalls still occur too often. And with the FDA’s focus on ready-to-eat (RTE) foods, the dairy industry is no exception. For example, there have been more than 20 recalls of various types of cheeses due to Listeria monocytogenes concerns thus far in 2017.

Dairy plant managers work to keep their processing equipment running as frequently as possible to optimize plant efficiency and minimize operating costs.

Hispanic cuisine makes up a large portion of the food market in the United States, and the demand of Hispanic-style cheeses has been rising over the past two decades.

There is no better time for processors to make sure they have the policies, procedures and practices in place to help meet the objectives of new rules on Preventive Controls for Human Food under the Food Safety Modernization Act.

Ensuring consumer safety through innovative technologies that improve product safety is a critical priority for the dairy industry. Important pillars of a safe dairy product include having high-quality raw materials, proper storage temperatures, proper pasteurization and good sanitation procedures.

There is a new urgency to understand the fundamentals of hygienic equipment design since we addressed this subject in a column last year.

With new regulations and industry changes, it is vital for processors to stay on top of government demands to ensure the safety of the food they are manufacturing, producing, selling and distributing.