Ahead of the enforcement date for its catfish inspection program, USDA said it will inspect catfish plants once per shift rather than its original plan of having inspectors in the plant whenever it was in operation. In a Federal Register notice, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said catfish plants are more like processing plants than slaughterhouses, which by law cannot operate unless an inspector is present.
“The typical farm-raised fish slaughter operation is a streamlined automated process that combines slaughter with processing in the same continuous operation,” said FSIS in the Federal Register. The agency said it considers processing to include cutting and packaging. At catfish plants, “The deheading, eviscerating, filleting and skinning operations are typically automated and the process flows quickly and seamlessly on conveyor belts.”
The FSIS said it would accept public comment on its plan until June 16. There are 16 plants that now have full-time inspection, part of the 18-month transition from the issuance of USDA’s catfish inspection rule until full enforcement begins on Sept. 1. The shift to inspection once per shift would take effect on Sept. 1 as well.