Foodlaw-Reading
Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
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FSA Local Authority Letter (PLGEN23032), 25 May 2023
Summary: Food Standards Agency (FSA) update on the development of Mechanically Separated Meat (MSM) guidance.
Local Authorities (LAs) will wish to be aware that the FSA is sending a letter to Meat Industry stakeholders [see below] to reassure that work is progressing on the development of MSM guidance, to support Food Business Operators in achieving regulatory compliance following High Court and Supreme Court judgments on MSM classification. This follows the letter that was shared with you in November 2022 on the FSA definition of MSM [see link below].
LAs may be competent authorities for businesses that could be impacted by the new guidance, and therefore may wish to share the latest letter with them. The FSA will launch a public consultation on the guidance in the coming months and would welcome responses from LAs, Industry and other stakeholders to fully understand those impacts.
The following is the text of the letter to Meat Industry Stakeholders:
Update regarding new guidance on Mechanically Separated Meat (MSM)
Following the conclusion of High Court and Supreme Court action regarding MSM, I wrote to you on 14 November 2022. I stated that the FSA will publish guidance to support Food Business Operators achieve compliance with regulatory requirements, in light of the Court rulings. Developing guidance on what has been a complex issue for many years requires careful consideration. I would like to assure you that the work is progressing, and we hope to launch an associated public consultation in the next few months.
In continuing recognition of the challenges that this matter may represent for some industry stakeholders, it remains the FSA position that enforcement at FSA-approved establishments that were applying (and continue to apply) the guidance to the 2012 moratorium on desinewed meat at the point of its withdrawal (14 November 2022) is not planned until newMSM guidance is in place. Any changes to this position will be clearly communicated by the FSA.
All interested parties will have the opportunity to feed into the development of the guidance via the public consultation, through which we will invite views, proposals, and supporting evidence. Further details and timelines will be communicated in due course, and I look forward to the FSA and stakeholders working together to enable necessary changes to be implemented as smoothly as possible.
For the previous news item on this topic, see:
