In a Federal Register Notice to be published on November 4, 2013, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the release of a risk profile on pathogen and filth in spices reporting that nearly 12 percent of imported spices are contaminated with insect parts, whole insects, and rodent hairs and that 6.6 percent of the tested spices are containing salmonella.
According to FDA, “The study identified 14 spice/seasoning-associated outbreaks worldwide that occurred from 1973 to 2010, resulting in less than 2,000 reported human illnesses and 128 hospitalizations worldwide.” The report furthermore states that, “Pathogen growth in spiced food is suspected to have played a role in some outbreaks, but it was not likely a contributing factor in three of the larger Salmonella outbreaks, which involved low-moisture foods.”
In an effort to enhance the spice safety, FDA will implement the following steps:
- Strengthen the capacity of regulatory systems in spice source countries
- Work with governments of spice producing countries to enhance food safety oversight by developing and formalizing programs such as the Indian EIC certificate program
- Improve storage practices for spices
- Improve Import Alert communication
- Enhance education and training for primary and secondary spice processors
- Increase inspections of foreign and domestic spice warehouses, spice processing, and spice pathogen reduction treatment facilities
- Alert/communicate with spice producing countries and the spice industry as a whole when observations suggest that the application of current preventive controls for pathogens and filth in spices may not be adequate
- Overhaul FDA product codes to allow for better identification of products and more precise tracking and trending of products by FDA
The American Spice Trade Association released a statement in response to FDA’s report advising that, “Much of the spice presented at import is essentially a raw agricultural commodity that will undergo extensive cleaning, processing and treatment for pathogens once it enters the U.S. to ensure it is clean and free of microbial contamination.”
FDA is requesting comments to be submitted to the Federal Register by January 3, 2014.
The complete report can be accessed here
The Federal Register Notice can be viewed here
FDA’s announcement of the release of the report can be accessed here
The American Spice Trade Association’s statement can be accessed here
