WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD-TV NEWS) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is looking to expand market access for small meat processors and cattle producers as it works to implement changes focused on competition, inspection, and processing capacity.
USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Mindy Brashears joined us on Wednesday’s Market Day Report to discuss how expanding programs will allow state-inspected processors to sell their products across state lines.
Expanding Interstate Market Access
In her interview with RFD-TV News, Dr. Brashears said the Cooperative Interstate Shipment (CIS) Program can give small processors operating under state inspection an opportunity to reach customers outside their home state.
“It’s great news for our small processors,” Brashears said. “The CIS program allows them to not only have inspected products that are sold within the state, but then the products are eligible to be shipped to other states.”
She said expanding the program could give processors more opportunities to grow their businesses while also giving producers additional options for getting livestock processed and marketed.
“It really expands their market access where they can go with their product and ultimately the impact they have across the U.S. instead of just within the state,” Brashears said.
Modernizing Meat Inspection
Brashears said USDA also wants to modernize inspection procedures without compromising food safety.
“I’ve spent my career in food safety, and that will always be the top priority at USDA FSIS,” Brashears said. “We will never compromise food safety.”
She said some inspection requirements and procedures have become outdated over time, including certain record-keeping and reporting processes.
Brashears said USDA is looking at ways to improve efficiency and streamline how information is communicated between the Food Safety and Inspection Service and processors.
The goal, she said, is to let processors spend less time on paperwork and more time producing safe food.
Competition and Producer Concerns
Another part of the effort involves investigating potential anticompetitive practices and price manipulation.
Brashears said USDA wants producers to report concerns if they believe they are being treated unfairly.
“We want fair competition. We want fair market access for all of our ranchers, all of our cattle producers,” Brashears said.
She said USDA is working with the Department of Justice on ongoing investigations and wants producers to know they can reach out to the department with concerns.
“We want to make sure that the playing field is level for our ranchers and that they have access to the market and they’re getting the best prices they can possibly be,” Brashears said.
Technical Help for Small Processors
USDA is also working to provide additional technical assistance and training for small and very small processors.
Brashears pointed to a new USDA program that includes funding for technical assistance, state inspection programs and university partnerships.
She said universities could establish regional centers focused on outreach and training while also helping expand processing capacity and workforce development.
For small processors, navigating federal inspection requirements can be difficult, particularly when it comes to technical food-safety requirements.
“Whenever a small processor looks at a regulatory menu and things they have to know all about it, E. coli and Salmonella and HACCP, that’s a completely different language,” Brashears said.
USDA plans to work through Extension and university programs to help processors understand those requirements without requiring large additional investments.
Measuring Market Access
Brashears said USDA will measure whether the changes actually improve access for cattle producers and ranchers.
In some parts of the country, she said, processors are readily available. In other areas, producers face significant delays or long travel distances.
“In others, we’ve been told it takes up to a year to get their cattle to a processor, or they may have to drive five hours,” Brashears said.
USDA plans to track processing access at the individual and state levels, including how many state programs transition to Cooperative Interstate Shipment programs.
The department will also track whether products currently processed under custom-exempt arrangements can move into state inspection programs and ultimately reach broader markets.
“We will be having a number of different metrics that we will be following,” Brashears said.
