FDA cracks down on eggs to reduce illness

By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. egg producers will have to adopt tougher food safety measures during production, storage and transportation to help prevent the spread of a deadly strain of Salmonella bacterium in eggs that causes more than 142,000 illnesses a year, the government said on Tuesday.

The new rule, expected to improve the safety of 99 percent of all eggs sold in the United States, would reduce cases of Salmonella enteritidis infections from eggs by 60 percent and prevent 30 deaths each year, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

"This action underscores our strategy to prevent illnesses before they occur," FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said.

The department said most egg producers with 3,000 or more laying hens must test their poultry houses for the bacterium and establish rodent, pest and biosecurity measures to prevent the spread of Salmonella throughout the farm.

The agency estimated these and other preventative measures would save $1.4 billion in health costs. It predicted the cost to the industry would be $81 million a year.

The new measure also would require eggs to be refrigerated at 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7 degrees Celsius) beginning 36 hours after the eggs, expanding the protection to include farms, transportation and storage. Currently, federal regulations require eggs to be refrigerated once they are packed and on retail shelves.

The agency said producers with at least 3,000 but fewer than 50,000 laying hens must comply with the new rule within 36 months. Producers with more than 50,000 laying hens -- which produce about 71 percent of all eggs sold to consumers -- have 12 months to meet the new standard.

The new egg rule was included as part of a broader food safety plan released by the Obama administration on Tuesday to improve the food supply following a series of large recalls in recent years tied to peppers, peanut products and spinach.