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Chilton Consulting Group
Training
Resources
Food Safety Newsletter Facility Safety News
September 2008
Facility Safety Update
“Compliance and Performance”
Summer is fading into memory. It is time to make final plans for the year. Have I included all the training necessary? Have I evaluated my programs for this year? Am I ready to start next year or are there still loose ends to tie up?
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A COMPILATION OF NEWS ARTICLES AND EMERGING REGULATORY ISSUES AFFECTING THE SAFETY of the MEAT AND POULTRY INDUSTRY
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Announcements from Chilton Consulting Group
Fall is a busy season for Chilton Consulting Group. The entire Chilton Consulting Group team including Jeff Chilton, Dr Estes, Reynolds, Bobby Pace, Dr. Ron Beckman, David Rowe, David Baker, and Sharon Chilton stand ready as your partner to assist with your needs.
1) Below is a list of remaining HACCP Workshops for 2008.
Gainesville, GA October 28-29
Orlando, FL November 10-11
Baltimore, MD November 18-19
Chicago, IL December 2-3
These workshops offer a great opportunity to increase understanding and sponsorship of HACCP systems.
2) Bobby Pace, David Baker, and Jeff Chilton have completed SQF Auditor training in addition to already being certified as SQF Consultants. Contact Jeff Chilton to discuss how we can help meet all your needs for Gap Analysis, Pre-Assessments, SQF Program Development, SQF Training, and SQF Audits.
3) Food Defense Plans are needed by all food processing companies. Contact Chilton Consulting Group if you need help developing or verifying an effective, validated Food Defense Plan or Vulnerability Assessment.
4) In tough economic times, companies need to cut expenses, reduce operating costs, increase revenue, and maximize return on investment. Let us show you how our custom TOPs (Total Operational Performance System) can help you accomplish all these objectives to save you money!
5) Chilton Consulting Group has been added to the Approved Auditor List for all Con-Agra
co-packers.
6) Chilton Consulting Group will be modifying our HACCP Plan Reassessment Process to include an additional scored Food Safety and Quality Audit option. Look for more information on this process coming soon.
September is Electrical Safety Month
Every year since 2004 when the US Senate unanimously passed Resolution
334 deeming this National Electrical Safety Month, emphasis has been
placed on educating the American people about the “importance of
respecting electricity and practicing electrical safety in the home,
school, and workplace.” Electricity is a powerful and dangerous
necessity. There is electricity flowing everywhere these days and it
can be a temptation to try to make small repairs on our own. We need to
ensure that there are people in all of our facilities that are trained,
not only in the repair of electrical items but in the dangers as well.
They need to be trained in the proper PPE. Electrical related injuries
can be devastating for a family even if the person is able to live
through it. With the proper training and PPE even these fantastic
events are survivable with minimal effect on our lives.
Contact Jeff Chilton for more information on any of these new services. Chilton Consulting Group will be expanding considerably in 2008 while continuing to provide exceptional service as always for HACCP improvements and regulatory compliance.
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SERVICES AVAILABLE
With this growth there has also been an expansion of services. The list below outlines many of these services. If you don’t see what you need on this list, call and talk to us and we will do our best to see to your compliance and safety needs.
* Food Security Plan Development * Safe Quality Food (SQF) Consulting
* HACCP Plan Reassessments * HACCP Plan Developments
* Workplace Safety – OSHA Compliance and Workman’s Comp Cost Reductions, Training
* Food safety & Quality Audits * Sanitation / GMP Audits
* Audit Preparation – Silliker, Cook & Thurber, AIB * SPS / SSOP Separation Project
* IVT Preparation / Listeria Assessment * Quality Process Improvements
* Operations Management Improvements (TOPS) * HACCP Training Workshops
* Product Recall / Crisis Management Planning * Food Security Plans
* Manpower Reductions / Efficiency Improvements * Waste Water Control / Cost Reductions
* Animal Welfare Audits * Small Plant Layout and Design
* Training Seminars – Food Safety, Regulatory, Quality Topics
* Regulatory Compliance – EIAO Prep Audit or NOIE Response
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OSHA News
The Mayo clinic has information on MRSA
* Definition * Symptoms * Causes * Risk factors * When to seek medical advice
* Tests and diagnosis * Treatments and drugs * Prevention
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mrsa/DS00735/DSECTION=prevention
DOSH Hazard Alert (canned air)
These products are commonly used in offices and other businesses to remove dust from computers, shredders, and other electronic equipment. Without training, users may not follow safe use practices because they mistakenly assume these products contain harmless, pressurized air.
‘Canned air’ is not the air you breathe. Canned‐air products contain a gas that is mostly compressed into a liquid. A variety of gases are used in these products and some are highly flammable. One example of a commonly‐used, highly‐flammable gas is difluoroethane. The only sure way to know what’s really in the can is to check the product label or the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the product.
Flammable ingredients. ; Frostbite; Asphyxiation and toxicity
Scratched Surfaces May Trap Bacteria During Food Processing Studies examine new countertop materials, cleaners to cut contamination http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_69126.html
OSHA records another successful enforcement year in FY 2007
WASHINGTON -- In FY 2007, OSHA conducted 39,324 total inspections, a 4.3 percent increase over its stated goal of 37,700. Total violations of OSHA's standards and regulations were 88,846, a 6 percent increase from Fiscal Year (FY) 2006. The agency cited 67,176 serious violations, a 9 percent increase from the previous year and a more than 12 percent increase over the past four years. The number of cited repeat violations also rose from 2,551 in FY 2006 to 2,714 in FY 2007.
A VERY interesting Paper on "Indirect Costs" of accidents View paper [PDF 128KB] http://www.hse.gov.uk/economics/research/injuryill0506.pdf
OSHA Enforcement / Accidents
The numbers of enforcement actions against food processors seems to be increasing over the number that I was reporting just a few years ago. Also the number of PSM actions (surrounding Ammonia) appears to be getting more prevalent. Let Chilton Consulting Group review your facility, your programs, your safety in an effort to ensure that your facility does not become a statistic.
Fines May Be Assessed for Single-Instance Violations
OSHA's latest proposal would require that employers pay fines for each
employee who is not wearing personal protective equipment, rather than a
single fine for violating a standard. Comments on the rule are due by
Sept. 18. http://www.douglaspubs.com/ls.cfm?r=52626114&sid=4705828&m=555196&u=Douglas&s=http://www.workplacemagazine.com/ezinestory/safety/2008/august/08292008Article2.htm
OSHA Issues $50,400 Penalty for Combustible Dust, Electrical, and Machine Hazards at Pet Food Plant
OSHA is proposing $50,400 in penalties for 26 alleged safety and health violations found at the Hi-Tek Rations pet food manufacturing facility in Dublin, Ga. An OSHA inspection revealed a significant accumulation of dust from the dog food processing area as well as hazardous working conditions. Employees were exposed to fall, electrical, and fire hazards. Machine guards were missing and employees worked without proper eye, face, and hand protection. In all, OSHA detected 25 serious violations resulting in $49,600 in proposed penalties. OSHA also cited the plant for one other-than-serious violation, with a proposed penalty of $800, for not maintaining a proper record of injuries and illnesses occurring in 2007.
Maine egg farm faces $150,000 in penalties: 4 alleged willful and serious violations of safety standards for requiring workers to go atop a collapsed building without assessing the integrity of the roof. Workers were required to go into this building to retrieve eggs without the assessment and workers were also required to go atop the building without the assessment and without fall protection. Occupational Hazards
Reddy Ice employee injured in plant accident (employee lost his right leg below the knee following an accident - a preliminary report by the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Division showed that the employee’s foot got caught in the auger of an ice machine - no other details) http://www.fayobserver.com/article?id=302764
Honeywell Agrees to $6 Million Settlement for Environmental Violations
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) Director Steve Owens and Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard announced that Honeywell International, Inc. (Honeywell) will pay a $5 million civil penalty for hazardous waste and environmental cleanup violations at its Phoenix airport facility and $1 million for a supplemental environmental project. – while this is not a food processor it is included to show that the EPA is getting more forceful with its enforcement actions. Don’t let your facility become a statistic. $6 million is a blow that very few companies can absorb.
Eureka Ice under fire (an owner of an Ice and Cold Storage business said that the county has given the business just days to remove the anhydrous ammonia it uses to make ice from its waterfront building, or face millions in fines - the company must move the ammonia unit off site - business has for years been the subject of concern for the county Department of Health and Human Service's Environmental Health Division for not producing an earthquake risk assessment for ammonia on site) http://m1e.net/c?73693935-eW04HZLnXbBaE%403602698-ItiSGeUpIMgRw
Workers taken to hospital after exposure to sanitizer (nearly thirty workers at a seafood processing plant were taken to hospital after being exposed to high levels of an industrial cleaning agent - exposure occurred during morning production at the processing plant - around 8:15 am, two workers were spraying down equipment with a liquid containing diluted Oxygerm, a peracetic acid-based sanitizer, when they detected a noxious vinegar-like smell - one of the two employees also reported minor skin contact with the sanitizing liquid - shortly thereafter, the processing room was evacuated and rinsed down with water as several other workers reported breathing difficulties and at least one worker fainted several times) http://m1e.net/c?73693935-O9XcPuYREq2vQ%403602701-7YD2cChy4Hr6%2e
EPA News
What Rules are Pending This Month? http://lists.ercweb.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kh5UDAcADFZRSAAICkQBAABW
Reporting Spills and Environmental Violations: Free EPA Guide - Are you concerned about an environmental situation within your community but don't know where to go for answers? This free EPA guide discusses how to report any type of activity you suspect may not be in compliance with federal environmental regulations. Learn when and who to call if you suspect a dangerous situation. http://www.emediausa.com/l/?26094.912521.GKYYYHOP.0.6185
Grocery Stores Lead the Way in Ozone Layer Protection - EPA Welcomes Eight New GreenChill Partners, Tripling Membership in Less than a Year
U.S.-Mexico Environmental Partnership Bringing Cleaner Water and Air
To Border Communities
http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/d0cf6618525a9efb85257359003fb69d/65a55bf92f289899852574bb0076ff49!OpenDocument
More ethanol-subsidy cuts needed: U.S.D.A.'s Schafer (MEATPOULTRY.com, September 12, 2008) http://www.meatpoultry.com/news/headline_stories.asp?ArticleID=96424
Roy Farms, Inc., Fined for Clean Air Act Violations
EPA announced August 14 that Roy Farms, Inc. (Roy Farms), has agreed to pay $29,320 for alleged federal Clean Air Act (CAA) emergency prevention and planning violations. The alleged violations occurred between July 2002 and July 2007.
As part of the settlement, Roy Farms has corrected all alleged violations and agreed to spend at least $84,120 on implementing a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) within the next three months. The SEP involves purchasing new communications and safety equipment for the East Valley Fire Department, Yakima County Fire District No. 4, to improve the department’s capabilities in responding to hazardous material emergencies in a safe and effective environment.
EPA Enforcement
There is a large number of Environmental actions against food companies (growers, manufacturers, storages and shippers alike). Ensure that your facility is covered.
California Refrigeration Facility Fined $63,300 in Air Pollution Penalties
The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has fined Clougherty Packing/Farmer John, a subsidiary of Hormel Foods, $63,300 for failure to comply with diesel truck emission requirements and for failing to file a one-time report for its Vernon, Calif., distribution facility, violating the Transport Refrigeration Unit facilities regulation. Further, the company failed to inspect its diesel truck fleet for excess emissions in 2006 and 2007
Alaskan Seafood Processor Fined $38,000 for Polluting the Kenai River
Salamatof Seafoods Inc. (Salamatof), an Alaskan seafood processor plant located in Kenai, Ala,, has agreed to pay a $38,000 penalty to settle alleged federal Clean Water Act violations. The Salamatof plant was inspected by EPA and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation in 2002, 2005, and 2006 and cited for violations of the company’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. The plant discharges seafood processing wastewater into the Kenai River, which flows into Cook Inlet.
The alleged violations included: Unauthorized discharges of seafood processing waste into the Kenai River; Failure to monitor; Failure to develop and operate in accordance with an appropriate best management practices plan; Failure to submit annual reports
States Sue EPA for Failing to Regulate Global Warming
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal announced a multi-state lawsuit against the U.S. EPA for failing to regulate harmful pollution from oil refineries.
The lawsuit—filed by a coalition of 12 states, the District of Columbia, and the City of New York— alleges that the EPA is in violation of the Clean Air Act (CAA) for failing to adopt standards requiring that new or renovated oil refineries install technologies to control global warming pollution. Sued for an event that has not been conclusively proven or tied to man made emissions.
"The EPA has defied the Clean Air Act and the Supreme Court by repeatedly ignoring a ruling that global warming emissions are pollutants,” Blumenthal said. “EPA's failure to regulate greenhouse gases through state-of-the-art technologies is an abrogation of its responsibilities. Our coalition of states and cities will fight hard—as we have repeatedly—to force the EPA to follow the law."
Borton and Sons, Inc. Agrees to Pay EPA More Than $16,000 for CAA Risk Management Program Violations
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that a cold storage facility has agreed to pay $16,746 for alleged federal Clean Air Act (CAA) Risk Management Program violations. As part of the settlement with the EPA, the business also has corrected all alleged violations, and agreed to spend at least $53,544 on implementing a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) within the next twelve months. Click Here for more info on this case.
Company Fined $30,000 for Improper Handling of Bakery Waste
Endres Processing LLC, of Rosemount, Minn., has paid a $30,000 civil penalty to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) for, among other alleged violations, storing approximately 600 tons of solid waste outdoors, uncovered and without a permit. The violations occurred between September 2006 and March 2007.
King Foods Fined for Violating Pennsylvania Storage Tank Act
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued a $24,000 penalty recently against the owners of King Foods in Harrisburg for the company’s ongoing failure to test its underground fuel storage tanks as required. DEP’s investigations found that Mohammed and Shabana Swati, owners of the store at 1300 N. Second St., committed multiple violations of the state’s Storage Tank Act, including a failure to perform necessary monitoring activities, such as a cathodic protection test that is required at three-year intervals. The owners also did not perform tank- and piping-release detection tests.
EPA Orders Illinois Dairy to Stop Discharges, Apply for Permit
EPA Region 5 has ordered Mondt Dairy Farm in Aviston, Ill., in Clinton County, to stop discharging stormwater and process wastewater, apply for a wastewater discharge permit from Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and come into compliance with the Clean Water Act (CWA).
Vermont Dairy Farmers Pay Consequences for Filling 41 Acres of Wetlands
Owners of the Richford, Vt., Pleasant Valley Farm, Mark and Amanda St. Pierre, will pay a significant penalty, restore damaged wetlands, and perform additional environmental projects under the terms of a settlement with EPA and the U.S. Department of Justice for converting 41 acres of wetlands to corn and hay production areas on their dairy farm.
Quality (ISO) Information
What is ISO 14001 Environment Management System (EMS)
and Should I Care?
http://www.emediausa.com/l/?25135.912521.GKYYYHOP.0.3373
ISO 9001: 2008 Implementation Schedule Released
GENEVA-ISO and IAF have agreed on an implementation plan for transition of accredited certification to ISO 9001: 2008. http://www.qualitymag.com/CDA/Articles/Industry_Headlines/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000411321
U.S. Senators Call for Investigation into DoD Imports
WASHINGTON, D.C.-United States Senators have called for an investigation into the role of foreign imports in the U.S. defense industrial base. http://www.qualitymag.com/CDA/Articles/Industry_Headlines/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000422657
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Contact: Jeff Chilton, President, Chilton Consulting Group
Phone: 706-694-8325 Fax: 706-694-8316
E mail: chilton@alltel.net www.chiltonconsulting.com
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CHILTON CONSULTING GROUP – PERSONAL PROFILES
In each issue a different person will hold the top spot in an effort to make everyone aware of the diverse nature of this group and the wide range of services and expertise that we have to offer. I have included everyone’s email address so that if you have questions you can go directly to the person of interest.
Dr. Estes Reynolds agfood@charter.net
HACCP Training HACCP Plan Reassessments
Microbiological issues, Pathogen trouble shooting,
Process improvements. Quality improvements,
Plant Layout and Design for Small Processors.
Sharon Chilton schilton@alltel.net
Maintains the corporate library, assist with accounting and marketing details and coordinate consulting projects.
Jeff Chilton chilton@alltel.net
HACCP Plan Reassessments IVT/Rlm Audits
Regulatory Responses to NOIE or Notice of Suspensions
Audit Preparations Services / Food Safety and Quality Audits
HACCP Training Quality Improvements
TOPS: Total Operational Performance System
Dr. Ron Beckman drbeckman@tampabay.rr.com
Slaughter, slaughter regulations and improvements to the slaughter process.
USDA compliance assistance and mediation,
HACCP Plan reassessments, Animal Welfare Audits,
HIMP Implementation projects, BEV/Beef export Programs and
General productivity and efficiency reassessments.
Bobby Pace bobbypace@knology.net
HACCP and Food Safety Consultant
HACCP Plan Reassessments
Quality Improvements ISO Implementation / Auditing
David Rowe safety01@hughes.net
Facility Safety Training Mock OSHA Inspections, Safety Audits
Mechanical Integrity Tracking HACCP Plan Reassessments
ISO Implementation / Auditing Website / newsletter development
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