WASHINGTON—Two trade associations are asking FDA for a significant rewrite of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) proposals in comments submitted to FDA before the agency agreed today to give stakeholders one more week to submit them.

FDA had required all comments on the food safety proposals be submitted by Nov. 15, but after members of Congress and others complained about technical problems with the government-wide website, www.regulations.gov , that processes comments, FDA announced a one-week extension. All comments on the FSMA produce safety and preventive controls proposals are due Nov. 22.

But United Fresh Produce Association and the Produce Marketing Association don’t need the extra week to file extensive comments on the proposals that question FDA’s approach to regulating on-farm produce safety.

“United appreciates the extensive work that FDA has put into drafting these new proposed regulations, representing the most significant change to food safety law in more than 70 years,” said United President & CEO Tom Stenzel. “These proposals were a good first step, but can be significantly enhanced to be more effective in protecting public health, while allowing produce growers and distributors to continue providing an abundance of healthy and affordable fresh produce to consumers.” 

The nearly 100-page comments penned by United Fresh recommend FDA remove all the “arbitrary” quantitative metrics and push them into accompanying guidance documents. United Fresh also says the alternatives and variances in the rule are too restrictive, that the packing and holding of fresh produce should not be handled under the preventive controls rule, and that FDA should reissue a proposed rule before finalizing it.

PMA has its own complaints about FDA’s approach to food safety regulation. PMA urges FDA to recommend all farms prepare a food safety plan, farms not be excluded based on revenue, and agrees that FDA jumped the gun in mandating numerical preventive controls for agricultural water and treated soil amendments.

PMA Chief Science and Technology Officer Bob Whitaker forwarded the group’s lengthy comments to members today, along with a short video communicating the main points on each proposed rule.

In the meantime, a provision in the Farm Bill that would delay FSMA implementation is being debated as conferees work out differences between the two versions.

While offering no position on the Farm Bill provision, United Fresh’s Robert Guenther, senior vice president of public policy, told the Produce News that congressional oversight is important.

“Congressional oversight is important in making sure that the Administration follows the intent of the FSMA passed by Congress,” he said. “Without pre-judging the outcome of any specific legislative action, we believe that’s it’s very appropriate for Congress to urge FDA that it’s more important to get the regulations right than to rush to judgment and codify rules that aren’t appropriate.”