USDA COMPLETES ITS REVIEW OF TURKEY INSPECTION SYSTEM

LAURA KLEPACKI

WASHINGTON -- In its first review of a turkey inspection system implemented in 1985, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has found that conditions at plants operating under the program were generally good, but that some improvements are needed.

Last month, Mike Espy, USDA Secretary, announced results of the two-month review, which was conducted last fall.

Three of the 26 plants now using the system were found to have serious conditions -- including fecal contamination on product that was ready for shipment -- that required immediate remedial action. They are Empire Kosher Poultry, Mifflintown, Pa.; Zacky Farms, Fresno, Calif.; Round Hill Foods, New Oxford, Pa.

Corrective action was immediately taken, according to USDA.

Seven of the plants required increased quality control in areas ranging from lighting problems to congested conditions, and the remaining 16 were found to have adequately controlled conditions.

The nation's other 64 turkey processing plants operate under a traditional turkey inspection system that maintains a slower line process than those under the government's system, called the New Turkey Inspection System, or NTIS. Both plans call for individual inspections of every bird.

According to Stuart Proctor, president of the National Turkey Federation, the trade association representing all segments of the turkey industry, "Turkeys produced at NTIS plants are the most intensely inspected birds on the market." He said the process is similar to a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points, or HACCP, processing system. The NTIS plants process approximately two-thirds of the nation's turkeys.

Espy said: "Some of our findings and criticisms of NTIS by inspectors are serious and we must implement changes."

Some improvements planned for the NTIS include: retraining inspectors; follow-up visits to plants with problems; a reevaluation of product standards, and emphasis on better enforcement.