FDA Debuts New Tool for Compliance With FSMA Human Food Preventive Controls Rules
The Food and Drug Administration created a new Food Safety Plan Builder to help food facilities meet the requirements of Food Safety Modernization Act regulations on preventive controls for human food, it said. The free software application was developed by…
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FDA to “guide [companies], step-by-step, through the creation of a food safety plan, as required by FSMA,” FDA said. A series of tabs in the application prompts the user to answer questions about their business and facility. “Once all the tabs have been completed, the file may be saved or printed, and the firm will have a food safety plan to use in its operations and to provide when the FDA conducts an inspection,” FDA said. The optional program is primarily designed for small manufacturers, but “any size manufacturer can opt to use it,” the agency said. FDA also posted a series of videos and a guide on how to use the plan builder. Preventive controls rules for human food began to take effect in September 2016, with the next compliance date coming for small businesses on Sept. 18, 2017 (see 1509100021).