Mn iuii'l lltihimrJ.i 



already correctly storing 

 the meat on ice and 

 checking the temperature 

 of the cooler twice a day. 



The other issue was 

 over keeping crabmeat at 

 a safe temperature while 

 it's being picked from 

 the shells. Workers at 

 Washington Crab Co. 

 Inc. pick about 28,000 

 pounds of crabs a day, 

 cartful by cartful. To 

 ward off bacterial 

 growth, the meat is not 

 allowed to be warmer 

 than about 70 degrees. 

 So every time a worker 

 picks 5 pounds of 

 crabmeat, an employee 

 removes it and stores the 

 meat on ice. 



But rather than use 

 this system, the FDA 

 suggested the company 

 track the last crab in each 

 cart, follow it through 

 processing and make 

 sure it never reaches 70 

 degrees. Johnson and the FDA inspector 

 continue to discuss ways to handle this 

 issue. 



Kline, with the FDA, didn't know 

 the specifics of Johnson's case. But he 

 says the agency uses common sense in 

 carrying out HACCP inspections. 



"If a firm has a good program and 

 all we disagree on is a critical control 

 point, I can't imagine that being a big 

 deal," Kline says. "Whenever you have 

 a program this complex, I'm sure there 

 will be differences of opinion." 



Murray Fulcher, owner of South 

 Point Seafood in Ocracoke, breezed 

 through his inspection this spring. His 

 only fault was forgetting to sign two 

 forms out of a mound of paperwork. 



"I don't see where it's anything 

 different than what we've always been 

 doing," says Fulcher, who employs 

 three to five people and primarily sells 



Murray Fulcher, who owns South Point Seafood in Ocracoke, breezed through his inspection this spring. 

 His only fault was forgetting to Sl^Fl two forms out of a mound o/ p3.perWOrk. 



fish wholesale. "The only difference is 

 the record-keeping. Really, anybody who 

 tries to have quality seafood was already 

 trying to do what HACCP requires." 



Still, Fulcher wonders what will 

 happen to the companies that don't adopt 

 a HACCP plan, much less stick to one. 

 He is afraid those businesses will give 

 the good ones like his a bad name. 



Kline says FDA and state inspectors 

 aim to check all of the nation's seafood 

 manufacturers during the first year of 

 HACCP. Next year, they will follow up 

 with large manufacturers that had the 

 most significant problems, and they will 

 add wholesalers and other types of 

 seafood businesses. 



"We're doing everyone 100 percent 

 — even one-person operations that are 

 part-time — we're hitting them all, all of 

 them that we know about," Kline says. 



The FDA has 1 5 investigators 



trained in HACCP, and some states, 

 such as North Carolina, also provide 

 HACCP inspectors. Kline says inspec- 

 tors are investigating foreign firms as 

 well as domestic firms. But the agency 

 gives special consideration to businesses 

 from countries that have proven their 

 seafood safety program is equivalent to 

 HACCP. 



When importers don't pass 

 inspection, the FDA can detain their 

 cargo indefinitely. The agency also can 

 seize domestic cargo or issue an 

 injunction if the company doesn't heed 

 warnings. 



"I think (HACCP) is going to make 

 a difference," Kline says, although he 

 adds that illnesses related to seafood are 

 already rare. "From what I've seen of 

 the inspections we've done and the state 

 has done, we're finding that the industry 

 is aware of HACCP." □ 



COASTWATCH 11 



