The Food Industry Association (FMI) welcomed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposed rule to extend the compliance date for the Food Traceability Rule until July 2028, but encouraged FDA to adopt additional changes to the rule to ensure efficient implementation. FMI President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin offered the following statement.
Yesterday, the FDA published a Constituent Update regarding its proposal to extend the Food Traceability Rule’s compliance date. The update also included new FAQs and other resources.
“FMI is grateful for FDA’s recognition of the need to extend the compliance date for the Food Traceability Rule, which is the most complex regulation the food industry has ever faced. We also strongly believe that FDA should use this opportunity to make reasonable changes to the rule to reduce unnecessary complexity that would burden the supply chain and increase food costs to consumers.
“We fully support efforts to improve traceability throughout the supply chain and are working diligently to do so, but we must ensure that all stakeholders are engaged and that FDA can use the information required by the regulation to improve food safety without driving up costs throughout the supply chain. With a few key changes to the rule, FDA can meet the goal of reducing public health risk and facilitate more efficient and effective traceback investigations.
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“We thank the Trump administration for taking this very important and necessary step to provide more time for problem solving, technological innovation and collaboration. FMI and our members stand ready to continue working with FDA to make compliance achievable for all stakeholders while ensuring that the investment will improve food safety and public health for consumers.”
Featured in the Constituent Update are:
- New FAQs
- New examples of traceability plans for food processors, distribution centers, and aquaculture farms and facilities
- New supply chain examples for eggs, produce, nut butter, and dual jurisdiction facilities
- An At-A-Glance document on the rule
- Translations of the above documents into 6 additional languages (Spanish, French, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian)
These featured tools are accessible from the FDA’s Food Traceability Rule webpage, along with:
- FAQs
- Supply chain examples for different commodities
- Fact sheets
- A webpage about traceability lot codes, including examples of how Key Data Elements (KDEs) could appear on invoices and bills of lading
- Translations of the codified portion of the rule as well as many of the supporting materials and tools
- An interactive tool that explains Critical Tracking Events and Key Data Elements
- An interactive tool that identifies partial and full exemptions to the rule
- Information on how to apply for a waiver or exemption, if eligible