FDA Resumes Egg Inspection In Different Facilities After One Year

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has finally resumed the inspection of different egg-handling facilities in the country. The inspection was put on hold in 2015 after the nation's worst bird flu hit the region.

The federal agency was planning to conduct the inspection of large egg-handling facilities across 21 different states in the US before the entire inspection was temporarily suspended. Meanwhile, the smaller facilities were scheduled to be inspected by state agencies.

At the time of inspection, the veterinarians across the states were concerned about the further spread of the deadly H5N2 virus by federal officials and people visiting the facilities with over 3,000 birds, according Lauren Sucher, FDA spokeswoman.

Therefore, the FDA decided to put the inspection at the halt, after considering the fact that the risk of bird flu spread actually outweighs other forms of risks. The inspection to prevent the spread of Salmonella finally resumed on June 1, Wednesday.

It would be an understatement to say that the egg-handling units and facilities across different US states are complying with the standards set by the federal agency. This is evident from the fact that there have been no cases of Salmonella outbreak since the summer of 2015. According to Sucher, there is no reason why the egg-handling facilities would have stopped to comply with the federal regulations, just because the inspections were put on hold temporarily.

The inspection carried out by the FDA looks at the biosecurity and contamination control methods being used by the facility. It specifically looks at the methods used to prevent the entry of an excessive number of people to the barn and the disinfection methods used for clothing and equipment to eliminate any chances of cross-contamination.

In addition, the FDA officials assess the control methods used against rodents, pests and flies in the barn. They also check for compliance with the federal laws, for example, storage and transportation of eggs below 45 degrees.