5 Insights Into Food Regulation
By Amanda M. Westbrooks on Jan. 31, 2017There’s a lot to feel frustrated about when dealing with regulatory organizations, but a bit of empathy may help when meeting with inspectors. Tara Paster, president and founder of Paster Training Inc., and Melissa Vaccaro, vice president of consulting, who has more than 24 years of experience as a regulator with the Pennsylvania State Department of Agriculture, shared insights from the other side of the aisle.
1. State and federal codes and training differ.
“At this time, there is no national training program for health inspectors,” Paster says. Regulators recognize the issue and are working toward standardization, and the FDA holds training so inspectors can assess risks the same way, she says. But lack of money, time and resources have regulators struggling to reach the FDA’s standards.
“Even if they want to become FDA-standardized, the state may not necessarily have the same codes as what’s in the FDA Food Code, and those codes often differ from state to state,” Vaccaro says.
2. Time and staff are tight.
“I have seen situations where you might have one inspector assigned to 1,000 facilities,” Vaccaro says. “That’s a lot of facilities to cover within the course of a year, including reinspections.”
While inspectors are meant to help educate the industry and act as consultants as needed, many jurisdictions simply don’t have the time and resources. “It’s up to the industry to take the initiative and be responsible for the business,” Paster says.
3. C-stores are changing their business model.
With more c-stores expanding their food offerings, inspectors need to adjust from facility to facility. Is it a c-store or a restaurant? Does it have a limited or an expanded menu?
“They have to sit back and sort it out by looking at a menu review and observing how different areas are managed,” Paster says. “A very small area doing almost the same amount of work as a restaurant creates a lot of confusion that takes time to sort out.
“There’s nothing wrong with a facility operator educating an inspector,” she continues. “It happens all the time.”
4. Equipment has evolved.
Some states, such as Maryland, require any upgrades to a facility or equipment be brought to the regulator’s attention in advance. Others don’t. “Food equipment available to c-stores has changed drastically over the past 10 years, and especially recent years,” Vaccaro says. “Just look at soda machines.
“[The inspector’s] job is going to be to ask enough questions of the operator to assess whether food safety is in control or not. So the operator needs to know their equipment.”
5. Relationships are key.
The biggest change for the regulatory community has been the growing food-safety partnership with all branches of the foodservice industry, Paster and Vaccaro say. They encourage c-store retailers to know their regulators by name and have a voice when codes are being written.
Vaccaro points to Caroline Friel, senior regulatory compliance specialist for Wawa Inc., Wawa, Pa. Her participation in the Central Atlantic States Association of Food and Drug Officials helped Vaccaro build a true relationship with her.
“I could call her and say, ‘Hi Caroline, this is Melissa. I’m with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. I’m standing in this store and I have a question about some new equipment.’
“A connection made at these organizations makes it easier to take care of issues a lot quicker and with a lot less stress on both the facility and on the inspector.”