The microbial safety of “ready-to-eat” (RTE) foods is a hot topic that ASTA is hearing a lot about when it comes to implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not yet published guidance regarding classifying and processing RTE foods. In these “frequently asked questions” (FAQs), ASTA is sharing information on positions FDA could take on RTE based on the preambles to the FSMA final rules, talks that FDA officials have given, information published in the update to the spice draft risk profile, informal conversations with FDA officials, and other published FDA draft guidance. ASTA has produced these FAQs in order to help members understand FDA’s current thinking on RTE foods, but we note that we have not received input on this document from FDA.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently proposed phasing out ethylene oxide (EtO) use on spices and subsequently canceling the tolerances for spices, resulting in a potential future ban of imported spices with EtO residues in the U.S. In this session provided at the 2023 Regulatory Workshop held in Washington DC, you heard panelists from agencies and academia discuss updates on EPA’s proposed ETO actions and the safety of spices. EPA officials shared an update on their actions, and panelists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and non-governmental and academic institutions discussed EPA’s proposals and the potential impact on the safety of spices. This was the presentation provided by Gail Charnley, HealthRisk Strategies LLC.