The USDA sets maximum limits for salmonella in meat and poultry produced in the U.S. Its Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) tests raw poultry samples from manufacturing plants for salmonella weekly. The FSIS ranks each facility based on salmonella testing results across a 52-week moving window.
Each week, as new samples are tested, older results shift out of the ranking.
The rankings published last week were based on chicken parts producers’ performance during the 52-week window from October 2017 to October 2018. Category 1 facilities did not have more than 50% of the maximum allowable salmonella during that window.
Category 2 facilities didn’t violate the maximum allowed salmonella, but wereabove the 50% mark. Category 3 facilities exceeded the maximum level. Category rankings are published on the FSIS’s website.
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“Public posting of performance encourages establishments to make changes to address salmonella. It is in any establishment’s interest to ensure that it meets or exceeds the pathogen reduction performance standards,” says an FSIS spokesperson.
The FSIS notifies facilities when they do not meet performance standards, evaluates the facilities’ safety plans and strategies to correct the problem, and decides whether further action is necessary.
The FULL LIST is very long, but here is just a snapshot of some of the facilities rankings in 2018.
For a full list of chicken producers and their ranking, click here.
