USDA-FSIS Now Includes Gluten in Major Allergen Verification Activities
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) has reissued its directive to inspectors about verification activities for major allergens to include gluten.
Specifically, FSIS revised the directive “Ongoing Verification of Product Formulation and Labeling Targeting the Nine Most Common ("Big 9") Food Allergens,” which provides instructions to inspection program personnel (IPP) for performing Big 9 Formulation Verification tasks. IPP verify that establishments are accurately controlling and labeling the nine most common (Big 9) food allergens, and now gluten, in establishments producing meat (including Siluriformes products), poultry, and egg products. The Big 9 allergens are those designated as "major food allergens" by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) of 2004 and the Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research Act (FASTER Act) of 2021.
Although gluten is not one of the Big 9 major food allergens, IPP will now verify that establishments are accurately controlling and labeling gluten similar to the Big 9 allergens.
Additionally, FSIS is removing certain tree nuts that are no longer considered major food allergens, updating the "milk" category to include milk from other ruminant animals, such as sheep and goat, and updating the "eggs" category to include eggs from other fowl, such as duck or quail. The changes to tree nuts, milk, and eggs align with FDA's January 2025 updates to food allergen labeling requirements.
FSIS is not changing any labeling requirements for milk and egg, but is clarifying which types of milk and eggs are considered major allergens.
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