After years in development, a regulation that will apply HACCP principles to egg products regulation is under review at the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is the last step before publication. OMB normally has 90 days to review regulations, but the process can take more or less time. The HACCP regulation, written by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), arrived at OMB on June 10.

Meat and poultry inspection has been based on HACCP since the mid-1990s, and FSIS began to publicly discuss a similar rule as early as 1999, when former President Clinton announced several egg safety measures in response to Salmonella Enteritidis outbreaks. The Food and Drug Administration’s part of that plan – the Egg Safety Rule for shell eggs – has been in effect since 2009, while FSIS has continued to develop its rule for egg product plants. Some FSIS officials stated that the rule’s lower priority reflected the relative lack of food safety problems in egg products.

The rule will not become public until it is approved by OMB and published in the Federal Register. At that point, the public will be able to comment. The Further Processors Division of United Egg Association will analyze the rule and file comprehensive comments at that time.