FDA Update: Food Facility Registration Renewals Available Monday

WASHINGTONThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will begin accepting food facility registration renewals on Monday. The agency put on hold the biennial registration requirements after the Grocery Manufacturers Association and numerous other trade associations sought guidance in meeting the obligations.

FDA has released updated guidance concerning the necessity of specifying food categories as part of the registration information, and the agency listed additional food product categories for human and animal consumption.

"Information about a facility's food product categories is a key element to allow for rapid communications between FDA and facilities directly impacted by actual or potential bioterrorist attacks, other food-related emergencies, or food safety incidents," FDA stated in the October 2012 guidance. "Information about the categories of food a facility handles currently helps FDA conduct investigations and surveillance operations in response to food-related emergencies."

The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) requires domestic and foreign facilities that manufacture, process, pack or hold food for consumption in the U.S. to register every two years starting with a renewal period that was supposed to begin Oct. 1, 2012 and end Dec. 31, 2012. The requirements apply to beverages, conventional foods and supplements, said Justin Prochnow, a Denver-based shareholder with the international law firm of Greenberg Traurig, LLP.

The agency has explained the registration information will help it find the location and source of a bioterrorism event or foodborne illness.