USDA actions - United States Department of Agriculture

Food Review, April-June, 1991 by Lori Lynch

USDA Actions

Inspection and

Certification of Peanuts

Required

USDA now requires that all peanuts sold for human consumption be inspected and certified.

According USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), approximately 95 percent of the peanuts sold for human consumption are already inspected and certified under marketing orders for size, quality, and condition. Enacted in December, Public Law 101-220 requires that the remaining 5 percent of the peanut crop be inspected, certified, and tested.

AMS offers inspection and certification services for a fee to peanut handlers. 7Most handlers now operate under a "Peanut Marketing Agreement" authorized by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937. Under this arrangement, peanut handlers who have signed the marketing agreement are compensated when tested peanuts are found unsuitable for human consumption because of aflatoxin contamination.

Handlers who have not signed the agreement and whose peanuts must now be tested due to the new law may wish to sign the agreement to take advantage of the indemnification program. Interested handlers may contact the Peanut Administrative Committee, P.O. Box 18856, Lenox Square Station, Atlanta, GA, 30326.

Cheese Replaces Peanut

Butter

Due to an increase in the cost of peanuts and a decrease in the cost of cheese, the USDA is substituting cheese for peanut butter on a limited basis in its food assistance programs.

A drought reduced the size of the 1990 peanut crop, meaning fewer peanuts are available for peanut butter. The cost of peanuts increased from less than a dollar per pound last year to approximately $1.70 per pound. On the other hand, the average price of processed cheese has dropped from approximately $1.65 to $1.20 per pound.

According to USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, which oversees the food assistance programs, the replacement makes economic sense because USDA will get the best nutritional value it can for its money.

Cheese was readily available for Federal assistance programs in the early 1980's after high production led to large surpluses. Changes in the dairy price-support programs brought production more in line with demand, and generous donation policies greatly reduced Government-held inventories of cheese. Cheese prices rose sharply. As a result, very little cheese was purchased for Federal programs in fiscal year 1990. In many cases, peanut butter was substituted as an alternative source of protein.

The Nutrition Programs, which include the National School Lunch Program and the Nutrition Program for the Elderly, began receiving cheese in December 1990. The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) planned to replace peanut butter with cheese in February 1991. TEFAP gives foods donated by USDA for household use to eligible Americans, including low-income and unemployed persons.

New Food Safety

Publication

Many of the approximately 7 million cases of foodborne illness reported each year in the United States result from consumers mishandling food after purchase. Therefore, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service is offering a new publication to inform consumers about safe food handling practices. According to statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, approximately 85 percent of foodborne illness incidents could be avoided by following safe methods for food handling.

The publication, A Quick Consumer Guide to Safe Food Handling, was developed after food scientists analyzed consumer handling of food in the home using a scientific method called the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) approach. This system identifies the critical points in everyday food handling where experts say the wrong move could result in foodborne illness.

The publication provides do's and don'ts of safe food handling, emphasizing meat and poultry products. It covers the food safety aspects of food shopping, storage, meal preparation, cooking, microwaving, serving, and handling leftovers.

The guide includes cold storage and cooking temperature charts which list recommended temperatures for meat and poultry products. The cold storage chart

details how long a wide variety of perishable foods will last at freezer and refrigerator temperatures. It also offers tips on handling refrigerated and frozen foods during an electrical power outage. Specific information on how to report a case of foodborne illness is given.

For a free copy of A Quick Consumer Guide to Safe Food Handling, write to: Consumer Information Center, 574-X, Pueblo, CO 81009.

Consumers with questions about safe food handling can also call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-800-535-4555, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET. Residents of the Washington, DC, area can call (202) 447-3333.

Sharwil Avocados Can

Move Interstate from

Hawaii

Sharwil avocados may now be shipped to the continental United States from Hawaii without treatment, providing they meet certain harvesting and handling requirements.

The shipping of avocados from Hawaii to the continental United States is regulated to prevent the spread of three insects, the Mediterranean, melon, and Oriental fruit flies. These flies are found in Hawaii but not in other parts of the United States. However, if the Sharwil variety of avocado is picked in compliance with USDA regulations and packed within 24 hours, it is not a host to these fruit flies.