FDA announces Final Rule on Foreign Supplier Verification Programs
FDA announces Final Rule on Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP)
for Importers of Food for Humans and Animals
Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) mandated the creation of a food safety system that places primary focus on preventing problems versus reacting to problems after they occur. The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the most sweeping reform of our food safety laws in more than 70 years, was signed into law by President Obama on January 4, 2011. It aims to ensure the U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it. Am I subject to FSVP? Click here.
The provisions established under FSMA include the creation of preventive controls for the production of:
- human and animal foods,
- risk-based activities for verification of food safety standards,
- science-based safety standards for produce grown on farms, and
- preventive practices related to sanitary transportation of human and animal foods.
The provisions apply to both domestic food producers and to those located in foreign countries who export food into the United States.
The import community will primarily be impacted by the Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP) rule, which requires FSVP importers verify the food they import meets U.S. safety standards.
For the purpose of FSVP, the importer is defined as the U.S. owner or consignee of the food offered for import (i.e., owns the food, has purchased it, or has agreed in writing to purchase it). If there is no U.S. owner or consignee at time of entry, the FSVP importer is the U.S. agent/representative of the foreign owner/consignee.
FSVP Fact Sheet Final Rule on FSVP Compliance Dates FSMA Provisions
