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News & Notes BRIEFS GOURMET NEWS DECEMBER 2016 www.gourmetnews.com NEWS & NOTES 6 Former FDA Director Discusses Need for Foreign Supplier Verification Plan Food importers have precious little time to design, test and implement a Foreign Sup- plier Verification Plan, warned the FDA's former Director of Import Operations Domenic J. Veneziano. Speaking at a No- vember 4, 2016, Town Hall Meeting spon- sored by the Association of Food Industries (AFI) in Newark, New Jersey, Veneziano, who now serves as Independent FDA Reg- ulatory and Strategic Consultant for global trade law firm Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, explained that waiting to create a compre- hensive FSVP could result in disruption of your supply chain, delays in entry process- ing, and in some cases, the exclusion of your products from the U.S. marketplace. Veneziano offered several tips to help food industry professionals meet the May 2017 FSVP compliance deadline and avoid costly disruptions to their business opera- tions. First, Veneziano explained, know if your company or facility is covered by the FSVP requirements. "Many people are under the impression that only the U.S. Customs im- porter of record is required to comply, "Veneziano said. "But the definition of 'im- porter' under the Food Safety Moderniza- tion Act is much broader and can include the actual CBP importer, as well as the owner or consignee of food being offered for import, and even the U.S. agent of the importer. All are at risk if FSVP require- ments are not met." Another common misconception is that only large food importers are required to create a foreign supplier verification pro- gram, but nothing could be further from the truth," Veneziano said. "The statute does make some concessions for smaller companies, but there are still requirements to be met. So the rule is unless you meet a specific exemption, your company must create a foreign supplier plan." In order to create a plan that meets gov- ernment requirements, it is important to understand the purpose of a FSVP. "Under the Food Safety Modernization Act, im- porters have explicit responsibility to en- sure the safety of imported food," Veneziano explains. "Foreign suppliers are expected to produce food using the same standards of processing and procedures re- quired by domestic producers. What you want to show the FDA is that you are tak- ing steps to ensure that foreign-produced food is safe and that the food entering the commerce of the United States is not adul- terated or misbranded," he said. Veneziano also emphasized the impor- tance of selecting a qualified individual to perform required FSVP activities. "The individual creating the Foreign Supplier Verification Program must have the education, training and/or experience necessary to conduct a sophisticated review of all the records associated with an activity under review," Veneziano said. "You need an expert who can not only develop the ac- tual program, but conduct hazard analyses, evaluate risks specific to the food being im- ported, verify supplier activities, monitor corrective actions and maintain records," he added. "It's a major undertaking and re- quires a high level of expertise." GN San Francisco Salt Company Carries Ireland's Second PDO-Accredited Product San Francisco Salt Company has partnered with Oriel Sea Salt, which is now accredited under the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), the most prestigious EU food qual- ity register. Oriel Sea Salt is the second product from Ireland to be recognized under the PDO and is used to craft San Francisco Salt Company's Whiskey Smoked Irish Sea Salt. The accreditation was re- ceived on August 31, 2016. The PDO designates agricultural prod- ucts or foodstuff that is exclusively deter- mined by the geographical environment they are in. In order to receive the PDO cer- tification, the product must be traditionally or entirely manufactured within the spe- cific region. Preparing, processing, and pro- ducing a product in one region is rare and brings out unique properties in that prod- uct. "The accreditation of the Oriel Salt being used in our salts is special because it allows us to create a gourmet salt blend that is high in quality and strong in taste," says Lee Williamson, President and CEO of San Francisco Salt Company. "We are the only gourmet salt company in the U.S. to carry the Whiskey Smoked Salt and it's exciting to see how much success we've had through the product." The production of the Whiskey Smoked Salt begins with smoking 90- year-old Nicaraguan oak kegs, which hold Teeling's finest Irish whiskey during its last 10 years of aging. The smoking takes place just hours after the kegs are emptied. This process ensures retention of the rich whiskey and oak aromas, which are then subtly infused into Oriel Kiln-Dried Mineral Sea Salt. Oriel Sea Salt is known for its powerful taste that allows chefs to use less salt and achieve the same kick. San Francisco Salt Company's Whiskey Smoked Irish Sea Salt is available in bulk packages for restaurants, hotels, bars and other volume customers as well as three re- tail-sized package options: 4-ounce glass shaker bottles, 5-ounce stackable shakers, and 8-ounce glass chef's jars with wooden scoop. GN Shelley McDaniel Joins Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board as West Coast Regional Marketing Manager The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB) welcomes Shelley McDaniel to the organization as West Coast Regional Marketing Manager. Based in Tacoma, Washington, Mc- Daniel will be responsible for managing re- tail and foodservice promotional activity across the West Coast. Most recently, Mc- Daniel held the position of Pacific North- west Foodservice Sales Manager at Emmi Roth USA. Prior to that, she worked for Classic Foods, the In Good Taste Cooking School and Cooking Accomplished!, a multi-line food business catering service founded by McDaniel. "Shelley comes to WMMB with a wealth of industry knowledge and experience in foodservice and retail sales that will help grow and expand our efforts in the western part of the country," said Allen Hendricks, Vice President of Foodservice & Education at WMMB. "We are very excited to wel- come her to the team." McDaniel holds a bachelor's degree in personnel management from the University of Washington and a culinary arts degree from the Western Culinary Institute. GN Fry's Foods Ratifies Union Agreement Associates working at The Kroger Co.'s Fry's Foods division have ratified a new agreement with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99. The agreement covers more than 20,000 associates working at 122 stores throughout Arizona. Meijer Gives Kids the Tools to Create Digital Wish Lists this Holiday Season Meijer is jumping into the 2016 holiday season by teaming up with parents to give children a fun, interactive way to build – and share – their wish lists. The Grand Rapids, Michigan-based retailer recently launched Wish List – its digital version of the traditional holiday catalog that children can flip through to give their parents and relatives ideas. "As our customers increasingly rely on digital tools while they shop, we recognize that their children or grandchildren are also using these devices," said Art Sebastian, Director of Digital Shopping for Meijer. "We wanted to create a fun, digital experience for children to build their wish lists this year." Mount Franklin Foods Acquires South Carolina Candy Plant Mount Franklin Foods, LLC, is adding a fifth food manufacturing plant and its first candy making facility to be located in the U.S. Through an investment expected to total $10 million, the plant will be updated with state-of-the-art equipment, allowing the company to add vitamin gummies and other fortified products as well as organic and natural fruit snack items to its product portfolio. The Sumter facility, which belonged to the former Au'some Candy Company, is on track to be operational by the end of the second quarter of 2017 and is expected to lead to the creation of at least 225 new jobs. Mount Franklin Foods has acquired all of the equipment and is now working on finalizing the real estate transaction. Weis Markets Completes 44 Store Conversions Weis Markets has successfully completed the conversion of 44 supermarket locations resulting from three acquisitions beginning August 1, 2016. Weis Markets recently acquired five Mars Super Market locations in Baltimore County, Maryland, 38 Food Lion stores throughout Maryland, Virginia and Delaware, and a Nell's Family Market in East Berlin, Pennsylvania. The completion of these individual acquisitions has expanded the company's footprint into Virginia and Delaware, and has increased its operating stores by 25 percent. Weis Markets completed the conversion process for the majority of these stores, including 38 former Food Lions, in September, October and early November. The company also interviewed and hired more than 2,000 team members who were previously employed at the acquired locations. Weis Markets now operates 204 stores in seven states: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and West Virginia.

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