Benjamin England, Founder and CEO of Maryland-based FDA consulting firm, FDAImports.com, will present at the 2013 Boston Seafood Show as part of a Panel Discussion entitled, “Seafood Safety and Compliance with FDA and CBP Regulations as Implemented by the Food Safety Modernization Act.” Mr. England will join other panelists, Peter Quinter of Gray Robinson, William Scopa of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and John Verbeten of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in discussing specific concerns for the seafood industry within the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The panel will be held on Monday, March 11, from 3:30 to 5:00 pm at the Boston Seafood Show, Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and will address the following topics:
• How the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) will reach into the seafood industry
• How FDA’s recent Proposed Rules already affect seafood HACCP directly
• How changes to FDA’s inspection program will directly impact the seafood industry
“FDA has a huge opportunity here to extend its jurisdictional enforcement,” said Ben England, Founder and CEO of FDAImports.com. “FSMA changes the way that FDA looks at seafood by affecting the food GMPs that are included in the seafood HACCP requirements. Foreign firms can expect more inspections, stricter enforcement, and more fees. There’s too much money to be collected for FDA to just walk away from it.” As a veteran attendee of the Boston Seafood Show and former FDA Regulatory Counsel, Ben England will bring a unique and valuable perspective to the panel discussion.
Session Description
The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011 has now been implemented and enforced by both FDA and CBP. Updates to the standard Fish and Fishery Products Hazards and Controls Guidance for Industry and The Seafood List (FDA’s Guide to Acceptable Market Names for Seafood Sold in Interstate Commerce) will be discussed. Monetary penalties and criminal investigations and prosecutions against seafood companies and their owners, officers, and managers is now a priority because of food safety concerns, and will be debated.
– bostonseafood.com/conference
