The meeting was called to order by Steve Krut, Chairman.

A brief welcome was followed by introductions. A sign-in sheet was circulated, a list of attendees is attached. Copies of the agenda were distributed to all attendees.

The minutes from the July 29 meeting were opened for discussion. Robert Zimbelman requested the correction of the American Society of Animal Science. The motion was made by Bill Brown and seconded by Deven Scott to approve the minutes, and there were no objections.

The next items discussed were the Articles of Incorporation and the Bylaws. The Articles of Incorporation were filed on September 29, 1994 in Washington, D.C. Rosemary Mucklow made the motion to adopt the Bylaws and it was seconded by Billy Lloyd, and there were no objections. After adoption, the Board discussed amending the Bylaws since The American Sheep Industry Association had submitted a written request that the Bylaws be changed to allow for a representative on the Board of Directors. Discussion reflected the fact that the proposed Board structure did not allow for representatives from the Sheep Industry or species other that beef, pork, lamb and poultry. Therefore, the motion was made by Rosemary Mucklow to include "Other Species" in the Producer Groups and Slaughter Processing Categories. The motion was seconded by Leon Russell, and there were no objections. The following table reflects revised categories of members and representation on the Board of Directors, as approved by the Board:

*Professional Societies: American Meat Science Association; American Veterinary Medical Association; American Society of Animal Science; Institute of Food Technologists; Poultry Science Association.

**Service groups will cover suppliers, consultants, and others who provide services, equipment, and other support to the meat and poultry industry will have annual dues of $500.00.

The motion was made by Rosemary Mucklow to adopt the current Board of Directors and seconded by Billy Lloyd, and there were no objections. However, it was noted that the present Board of Directors does not fit this distribution given above since it was agreed that the current Board would serve a one year term (which will end in September). However, the next Board will reflect this structure.

Rosemary Mucklow thanked Phil Olsson of Olsson, Frank and Weeda for his help and support provided to the Alliance in developing the Bylaws. His assistance has been a tremendous help, and the Alliance is grateful for his contributions.

An update on "USDA's Perspectives" was given by Mr. Tom Billy, FSIS Associate Administrator. Mr. Billy had previously spoken to and participated in the Alliance's Training Committee meeting which was held on October 13 in Washington, D.C. He stated that he was pleased that the Alliance wanted FSIS to be involved and encouraged the two groups to continue to work together.

Mr. Billy briefly updated the Alliance on the status of the proposed regulation which is expected to mandate HACCP. He noted that the regulation was currently undergoing review by O&B and would hopefully be approved and published in the Federal Register by Dec. 15. Mr. Billy noted that the proposed regulation will have three main objectives:

1. To set a comprehensive, multi-year agenda for reducing microbial contamination.
2. To define a structure for HACCP implementation in plants and the inspection program.
3. To propose interim steps to be used to help address microbial pathogens while HACCP and other long-term initiatives are being phased into place.

Mr. Billy also stated that it is important that the entire system be involved to improve products which means that one shouldn't ignore pre-slaughter issues or the product after it leaves the plant, including transportation and storage. He noted that the Food Code might not be completely adequate for meat and poultry processing at the retail level, but that it was a good start.

As far as the proposed schedule for implementing HACCP, Mr. Billy stated that HACCP would be phased in across all segments of the industry. He indicated that each firm would be required to have at least one person trained in HACCP, but that firms may need outside help to accomplish their needs.

Mr. Billy discussed the pre-HACCP initiatives that are being proposed to help the move toward HACCP, and one of the key areas was sanitation. He noted that every firm must have written sanitation SOP's with records available for review by inspectors.

Mr. Billy acknowledged that there would need to be a change within the agency which could change the inspection process and the roles of the inspectors. He also noted that training would be critical, and that a minimum of three days training would be needed to cover: a) HACCP principles, b) specifics of regulation requirements, legal obligations, etc., and c) how to begin the process of implementing HACCP in their areas. FSIS will develop a core curriculum, and Mr. Billy agreed that the Alliance and FSIS should work together to develop a HACCP curriculum.

After the regulations are published in the Federal Register, FSIS will hold public briefings across the country to explain the regulations and seek comments from the public. The locations and times have not been formalized.

Mr. Billy encouraged everyone to review the proposed regulations and submit comments to FSIS.

The next item on the agenda was an update on the National Center for Food Safety and Technology which was given by Dr. John Kvenberg. He stated that the main focus of NCFST was the development of a HACCP Library to include generic and specific HACCP plans which was inspired by the documents from the National Advisory Committee. The mission is to provide a vehicle for gathering information. He noted that they are forming working groups for process and product groups for working on models. The groups will gather/develop plans that are unique for a specific product. Each working group should gather existing plans, review and strengthen them and develop new plans as needed. Dr. Kvenberg encouraged the Alliance to try to coordinate and work with the NCFST to prevent duplication of efforts.

Following the lunch break, Dr. Beth Lautner presented the budget/expense reports for review. She noted that there was some carryover for this year, but she encouraged everyone to start thinking about financial commitment for 1995.

The individual committee reports were the next items on the agenda.

Training Committee: Report was given by Chairman, Rita Fullem. Please see attached report which provides details on the committee's activities. The committee met on October 13 in Washington, D.C.

A discussion of the importance of developing a core curriculum as soon as possible occurred. The Board charged the Training Committee with developing a core curriculum for a basic HACCP course and an "Executive" course within 3 weeks. These will be submitted to the Board for review.

The issue of having multiple levels of training courses was addressed. It was recommended that the Training Committee evaluate and make recommendations on the need to have multiple levels of courses which would build on each other -- similar to pre-requisites in college courses.

Certification and HACCP Expert Committee: Report was given by Co-Chairman, Bill Brown. Please see attached report which provides details on the committee's recommendations. The HACCP Expert Committee held a conference call on November 15 and both committees met on Wednesday, Nov. 30 in College Station, TX.

It should be noted that the Certification and HACCP Expert Committees be combined to improve the efficiency and prevent overlap. The combined committee will be co-chaired by Bill Brown and Dave Theno.

Discussion occurred concerning the need for the core curriculum before standards for certification can be developed. It was agreed that the American Meat Science Association and other groups could submit proposals for developing standardized test and grading procedures to assist in this process.

Marketing/Communication Committee: Report was given by Chairman, Joe Harris. Please see attached report. The committee conducted a conference call on November 10 and met on November 30 in College Station.

Previous activities were reviewed -- the logo and letterhead was developed and printed, the first "Alliance Alert" newsletter was written, two news releases were written and distributed, and media kits were developed.

The committee identified target groups to receive communication materials. The committee recommends sending information to professional groups outside of the Alliance, such as the American Association of Retired Person, the American Dietetic Association, etc...

Dr. Harris reminded each member that they are encouraged to pass the information along to their members and co-workers. He encouraged everyone to pull information from the newsletter and news releases as appropriate.

Information Management Committee: The committee chairman, Joellen Feirtag was unable to attend the meeting; therefore, Kerri Harris, Associate Director gave a brief update. The committee has not met or had a conference call. However, Dr. Feirtag has requested information from them, and hopes to have recommendations soon.

Scientific Advisory Committee: Report was given by Chairman, Beth Lautner. The committee conducted a conference call on November 30.

The committee is going to prepare a white paper outline on research target priorities. The committee recommended that they should review requests for financial support made to the Alliance for conferences, symposia, etc. The committee offered to peer review projects if requested and to help solicit for proposals if a group wants to fund a project. The committee does not feel that it is appropriate for the Alliance to plan on setting research priorities and soliciting for proposals at this time due to the limited budget.

Verification Committee (formerly the Evaluation Committee): Dane Bernard, Chairman of the committee was not able to attend. Report was given by Rita Fullem. Discussion occurred over changing the name of the committee from evaluation to verification. It was agreed that "verification" better represented the function of the committee.

The committee was charged with the responsibility of developing guidelines for verifying/evaluating/auditing that HACCP plans are working appropriately.

Other Business:

A brief discussion occurred over the forthcoming proposed HACCP regulations. It was agreed that the Alliance must remain apolitical, and that individual associations would be responsible for commenting on policy issues. It was suggested and agreed that the Alliance could form a committee to provide a technical review discussing the scientific aspects of the regulation. This analysis would be submitted for Board approval before being released to FSIS. Dr. Cross will proceed with forming this committee.

It was determined that the current Board should have 2 more meetings before September. Members were asked to notify Kerri Harris, Associate Director, with potential dates that might correspond with another meeting. Otherwise a date will be selected in late Spring for a meeting at an airport hotel.

The motion was made and seconded that the meeting be adjourned.

Minutes approved / disapproved

________________________
Stephen Krut
Chairman

Board Members:
Brown, Bill - Southeast Meat Association
Corlett, Donald - Institute of Food Technologists
Fullem, Rita - Food Processors Institute
Harris, Joe - Texas Beef Council
Holmes, Marty - Southwest Meat Association
Kastner, Curtis - American Meat Science Association
Krut, Steve - American Association of Meat Processors
Lautner, Beth - National Pork Producers Council
Lloyd, Billy - National Cattlemen's Association
Marcello, John - The Educational Foundation of the Nat'l Rest. Assoc.
Mucklow, Rosemary - Western States Meat Association
Nick Nickelson - National Live Stock and Meat Board
Russell, Leon - American Veterinary Medical Association
Scott, Deven - National Association of Meat Purveyors
Zimbelman, Robert - American Society of Animal Science

Staff::
Cross, Russell - Texas A&M University
Harris, Kerri - Texas A&M University

Alliance Members:
Barron, Felix - Clemson University
Billy, Tom - USDA, FSIS
Blair, Joe - HACCP Consulting Group
Burson, Dennis - University of Nebraska
Clarke, Denise - DC Communications
Cooper, James - American Association of Food Hygiene Veterinarians
Cravens, John - American Sheep Industry Association
Curtis, Pat - North Carolina State University
Grogan, Heidi - Canadian Cattlemen's Association
Henning, Bill - Pennsylvania State University
Hutton, Jon - Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada
Jan, Lee - Texas Department of Health
Klemmer, Linda - University of Minnesota
Knabel, Steve - Pennsylvania State University
Leader, Robert - Michigan State University
Leak, Fred - University of Florida
Letelier, Veronica - Western States Meat Association
Lockridge, Georgia - Texas A&M University
MacKenzie, Anne - Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada
Marcy, John - University of Arkansas
McMillin, Ken - Louisiana State University
Miller, K.T. - Monfort, Inc.
Miller, Mark - Texas Tech University
Nichols, Jim - Judith Quick & Associates
Papa, Charles - Continental Grain Company
Pierson, Merle - Virginia Tech
Pilkington, Dwain - North Carolina State University
Pruett, Payton - Webb Technical Group, Inc.
Ray, Fred - Oklahoma State University
Roeder, Rick - University of Idaho
Rosser, William - Texas Department of Health
Savell, Jeff - Texas A&M University
Shults, Gary - US Army Natick RD & E Center
Singleton, Jan - USDA- Extension Service
Smith, Bill USDA, FSIS
Thorlakson, Ben - Canadian Cattlemen's Association
Tompkin, Bruce - Armour Swift-Eckrich
Tynan, Robert - USDA, FSIS
Wabeck, Charles - University of Maryland
Waldoup, Amy - University of Arkansas

Go to the International Meat & Poultry HACCP Alliance Home Page