NCIMS proposals passed amidst spirit of cooperation
By Kate Sander, Chief Editor, Cheese Market News
WICHITA, Kan. — At the biennial meeting of the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS) earlier this month, delegates passed a number of resolutions important to dairy processors and producers and rejected others that they felt weren't right for the industry at this time.
But more exciting than the regulatory changes that were passed by representatives of departments of agriculture and health from all 50 states was the spirit of cooperation seen between industry, state regulatory officials and FDA, according to those in attendance.
FDA's approach to the conference was particularly appreciated by delegates, says Allen Sayler, director, regulatory affairs and international standards, International Dairy Foods Association, noting that the positive feelings at the meeting were so widespread that delegates passed a proposal to now give FDA 90 days instead of 45 days to review the proposals passed at NCIMS meetings. After NCIMS biennial meetings, FDA must say whether or not it concurs with the proposals passed. But 45 days isn't very long to make such reviews and delegates felt strongly that FDA needs the 90 days, Sayler says. The aura of good will was so strong that delegates decided to suspend the rules and make that proposal go into effect immediately instead of waiting as with the other proposals.
Beyond the issues of how NCIMS operates, drug residue testing was a major topic of discussion and the focus of many proposals before the delegates at this year's meeting.
One proposal that was rejected, according to Rob Byrne, vice president, regulatory affairs, National Milk Producers Federation, who just concluded serving as the program chair, was a proposal to test for five out of six and then eventually six out of six beta-lactam drugs. Currently, the industry tests for four out of six of these drugs, says Byrne. Byrne notes that drug residue positives are already low and that the costs associated with the additional tests aren't justified by public health concerns.
Also at the meeting, delegates voted to revert back to memorandum M-a-86's former requirement for producer trace-backs on drug residue-positive milk samples. This means that processors can wait for a confirmed positive instead of having to initiate a trace-back on a load of milk before a positive drug residue test is confirmed.
Meanwhile, the delegates decided to require that the 10 percent sampling program be conducted with the same test that was used at the plant for animal drug residue testing, Byrne says. The program is to be an auditing of the labs, not tankers, industry sources say.
In addition, the delegates approved a resolution stating that if FDA reinstates the National Drug Residue Milk Monitoring Program, which tested for a specific non beta-lactam drug each quarter, the program should be used for monitoring, not enforcement, says Byrne.
A proposal to eliminate the requirement for drug residue testing of Grade A dry milk products and Grade A condensed milk products also was passed.
Another proposal that was passed requires any new drug residue tests to be within 50 percent of the safe/tolerance. That means that tests wouldn't be so sensitive as to give positives even though the drug residue is within the allowable range, Byrne says. Also approved was the Parallux test for drug residue.
With 155 proposals on the table, though, they of course went beyond drug residue testing.
One proposal that was passed was the second phase of the HACCP pilot program. The program will be open to companies when both the company and the state regulatory agency agree they want to participate, Sayler says.
Meanwhile, a proposal to lower the maximum somatic cell count (SCC) for Grade A milk from the current 750,000 didn't pass, Byrne notes.
Two proposals from the American Dairy Products Institute (ADPI) to lower the Grade A maximum bacterial levels for nonfat dry milk and dry buttermilk didn't pass. Byrne notes that these proposals, along with the proposal to lower the SCC, would really have been more about quality than safety and it's felt the current levels are safe.
Warren Clark, executive director, ADPI, notes that since the last NCIMS conference, industry and USDA maximum standards have been lowered, posing the somewhat unusual situation of having Grade A standards with higher maximum bacterial levels which is why ADPI submitted the proposal.
Meanwhile, the BactoScan FC was approved for use in addition to the standard plate count test for determining total bacterial count in raw milk.
Another proposal that passed was a proposal to allow for an extended cooling time for condensed whey. Assuming FDA's concurrence, the cooling time during crystallization will be extended to allow for the product to be cooled to 45 degrees Fahrenheit or less within 48 hours versus the current 18 hours. That includes filling and emptying time unless filling is occurring above 135 degrees in which case the cooling period starts when the tank is filled, Byrne says.
The delegates also passed a proposal that establishes the supporting information necessary for companies to provide to regulatory officials if they want to do extended runs.
A proposal to allow for and clarify how descriptive terms such as "special" can be used when they apply to ingredients in a Grade A dairy product also was passed. The terms can not be used to describe the dairy product itself.
Another passed proposal having to do with flavorings was one that allows injection of flavoring in the pasteurizer in order to provide more flexibility, says Sayler.
One proposal that was a bit of a "sleeper" but generated a great deal of discussion was a proposal to exclude membrane-filtered milks not going into Grade A products from the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO), Byrne says. The concern about the proposal, which ultimately did not pass, was that it would allow these filtered milks to be imported and not meet Grade A requirements. Imported products that would fall under the PMO if domestically produced must meet Grade A standards.
Another proposal passed added a definition of allergens to the PMO and references FDA's compliance policy guide for allergens.
After FDA reviews the proposals, the NCIMS executive board and FDA will review those with which FDA doesn't agree and try to come to some sort of concurrence.
In addition, the conference established study committees, including one to look at hard chemistry as it relates to drug residue testing. The PMO doesn't allow for hard chemistry currently which can cause difficulties if there is conflicting information regarding drug residue-positive milk, notes Doug Engebretson, assistant director, dairy section, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and the Minnesota delegate to the conference.
Another study committee will examine the current requirement that water used in pipelines to rinse between product runs must be pasteurized instead of simply being potable. CMN
Other top stories in this week's issue of Cheese Market News:
• Pacific Northwest, Intermountain dairy compacts proposed in bill
• April milk production drops 1.9 percent from year earlier
• California energy forecast is gloomy
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