Constituent Update - March 6, 2026

Constituent Update - March 6, 2026

FSIS Key Leadership Changes

FSIS Deputy Administrator Dr. Denise Eblen and Office of Policy and Program Development (OPPD) Assistant Administrator Rachel Edelstein retired at the end of February. We thank them for their many years of service and contributions to FSIS and wish them well in their retirement.

We also want to welcome several leaders in the agency promoted to new roles. We are grateful we have these strong individuals, and many others, internally to fill such important positions. April Regonlinksi has been named the Assistant Administrator of OPPD, and William Griffin the Assistant Administrator of the Office of Investigation, Enforcement and Audit (OIEA). Both April and William bring years of experience to these roles and an unwavering commitment to the agency and its food safety mission. Additional leadership changes were made in the Office of Field Operations, Office of International Coordination, OPPD, and OIEA.

You can find these updates, and all personnel changes, on the FSIS website.

OPPD to Resume Review and Approval of Retained Water Protocols

Based on stakeholder feedback, the Office of Policy and Program Development (OPPD) will resume review and approval of retained water protocols (RWP) and associated data as establishments are improving data collection and accuracy and finalizing conclusions in preparing any necessary changes to labels ahead of the July 1, 2026, deadline.

Establishments seeking review and approval are encouraged to submit their RWP and associated data through askFSIS as soon as possible to ensure that they are able to make any necessary changes to product labels by July 1. FSIS in-plant personnel will continue to verify that establishments have complete RWPs on file when products retain water in compliance with the regulations.

FSIS Public Q&A Resources Moving to a New Website

Beginning March 23, 2026, the public questions and answers (Q&As) for askFSIS, the Small Plant Help Desk, and the Meat & Poultry Hotline will be available on a new website: ask.fsis.usda.gov.

The current site (ask.usda.gov) will be retired in the near future. For a limited time, visitors who use the old URL will be automatically redirected to the new site before the former is fully phased out.

The new website is being designed as a one-stop location for accessing FSIS public resources. Users will be able to search publicly available Q&As more easily, submit written questions, and contact askFSIS, the Small Plant Help Desk, and the Meat & Poultry Hotline directly. Enhanced search functionality will make it easier to find answers related to inspection, food safety, and regulatory requirements.

Additional features and improvements will be introduced over time as FSIS continues to expand the site's capabilities. Stay tuned for more updates as the transition progresses.

MPI Categorization Expansion

Based on recent stakeholder feedback requesting FSIS share more data and visuals of Salmonella sampling results, FSIS is updating the Meat, Poultry, and Egg Product Inspection Directory (MPI) Establishment Demographic Dataset (MPI Supplement) and associated dashboard to include Salmonella Performance Standard Categories for poultry products starting on March 9, 2026.

The MPI Supplement will be updated to include the category for each poultry product eligible for categorization and the start and end dates of the sampling period on which the categorization was based.

The MPI dashboard will have a new filter (SALMONELLA CATEGORY) where users can select a product-category pair (e.g., Comminuted Chicken-Category 3). Users will be able to filter the map to display all establishments that produce product eligible for categorization and respective category values. This new filter can also be used in conjunction with other existing filters to display establishments that meet additional criteria (e.g., large HACCP size and Comminuted Chicken-Category 3).

MPI users will also be able to hover over an establishment in the map to view all poultry products eligible for categorization that the establishment produces, each product's category, and the sampling period used to determine categorization. When establishments produce a product that is eligible for categorization under a performance standard, but there are not enough samples for the calculation, the category will be listed as 'NA' (e.g., Comminuted Chicken - Category NA).

Salmonella categories are posted monthly on the FSIS Website. The MPI Supplement and dashboard will reflect categorization data from the most recent Salmonella Performance Standard Categorization posting within 2 business days of a monthly posting.

FSIS Publishes Annual Antimicrobial Resistance Reports

FSIS has published its fiscal year (FY) 2025 product and cecal sampling Antimicrobial Resistance reports. These reports cover data from the prior FY and are released annually when all analyses are completed. This data release includes the sampling projects and pathogens under the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System and includes the antimicrobial resistance profile data by isolate counts. The bacterial isolates reported include Salmonella, Campylobacter, Enterococcus, and Escherichia coli from FSIS cecal projects, and Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli from FSIS product projects.

Available for Public Comment

FSIS seeks public comments on proposed rules and notices, which are viewable on the FSIS Federal Register & Rulemaking webpage. FSIS is currently seeking comments on the following:

• Until March 16: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Advanced Meat Recovery
• Until March 16: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Specified Risk Materials
• Until April 13: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Sanitation SOPs and Pathogen Reduction/HACCP
• Until April 20: Maximum Line Speed Under the New Swine Slaughter Inspection System (NSIS)
• Until April 20: Maximum Line Speed Rates for Young Chicken and Turkey Establishments Operating Under the New Poultry Inspection System (NPIS)

Policy Update

FSIS notices and directives on public health and regulatory issues are available on the FSIS Policy webpage. The following policy update was recently issued:

• FSIS Notice 12-26: Performance Management Instructions for Fiscal Year 2026
• FSIS Directive 6700.1: Retained Water Verification - Revision 3

Export Requirements Update

The Library of Export Requirements has been updated for products for the following:

• Azerbaijan
• China
• North Macedonia
• Japan
• European Union
• Maldives
• Cuba
• Taiwan
• Mauritius

Complete information can be found at the FSIS Import & Export Library.