The FDA and its counterpart agencies in the Mexican government, the National Service for Agroalimentary Public Health, Safety and Quality and the Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risks, are expanding their collaboration to reduce the risk of contamination of food that moves across the US-Mexican border.
This new level of collaboration has added importance as papayas from Mexico have been linked to approximately 100 cases of Salmonella Agona in 23 US states.
From 12 May to 18 August, FDA analysis found a 15.6% salmonella contamination rate. The positive samples were from 28 different firms and include nearly all the major papaya producing regions in Mexico.
Now, under an FDA Import Alert, papayas from each source in Mexico may be denied admission into the US unless the importer shows they are not contaminated with salmonella.
Simultaneously, the FDA and Mexican officials are stepping up their joint effort to trace recent contamination incidents back to their source and discover their cause or causes, in order to inform future prevention strategies.
The FDA and Mexican officials are also collaborating on laboratory methodologies used in Mexico for testing fresh papayas for salmonella.
The Mexican government and papaya industry have agreed to a longer-range action plan that will define proper food safety procedures throughout the chain of production and distribution in Mexico, and verify that the procedures are working effectively through product testing and other government oversight.
Mexican officials are overseeing the industry’s implementation of the action plan and the FDA is collaborating with the Mexican government in this effort.
Source: FDA
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