Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

newsworthy

Warehouse group seeks partial exemption from new food safety rule

International Warehouse Logistics Association has petitioned FDA to exempt warehouse operators from Food Safety Act provision on grounds it duplicates existing safety standards.

The International Warehouse Logistics Association (IWLA) on July 22 petitioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to exempt facilities that are "solely engaged in the storage of packaged foods that are not exposed to the environment" from compliance with Section 418 of the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act. That provision requires food storage facilities to conduct hazard analyses and specifies a host of preventive controls to address such hazards as food contamination, adulteration, and deterioration. The petition was jointly submitted by IWLA, a trade group representing third-party warehouse operators, and seven other associations representing food manufacturers and the grocery industry.

The associations argued that applying Section 418 to warehouses that store only packaged foods would impose unnecessary costs and administrative burdens with no public health benefit. Such facilities already comply with warehouse-specific food safety practices mandated under 21 CFR §110.93, they said. Furthermore, most of the potential hazards and preventive controls specified in Section 418 are appropriate for manufacturing and packaging operations but are not relevant to already packaged foods, they argued. "The responsibility for Section 418 is properly and best shouldered by the food manufacturer," the petitioners wrote.


The groups asked FDA to modify Section 418 so that warehouses storing only packaged foods would satisfy that provision through compliance with 21 CFR §110.93.

Applying Section 418 to warehouses and storage facilities that only handle packaged food would raise costs for those operators and ultimately for their customers and consumers, the associations said. "Certainly, [FDA's and industry's safety compliance] resources would be put to better use in controlling the risks that arise before the product leaves the manufacturing facility," they wrote.

The Latest

More Stories

Survey: In-store shopping sentiment up 21%

Survey: In-store shopping sentiment up 21%

E-commerce activity remains robust, but a growing number of consumers are reintegrating physical stores into their shopping journeys in 2024, emphasizing the need for retailers to focus on omnichannel business strategies. That’s according to an e-commerce study from Ryder System, Inc., released this week.

Ryder surveyed more than 1,300 consumers for its 2024 E-Commerce Consumer Study and found that 61% of consumers shop in-store “because they enjoy the experience,” a 21% increase compared to results from Ryder’s 2023 survey on the same subject. The current survey also found that 35% shop in-store because they don’t want to wait for online orders in the mail (up 4% from last year), and 15% say they shop in-store to avoid package theft (up 8% from last year).

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

containers stacked in a yard

Reinke moves from TIA to IANA in top office

Transportation industry veteran Anne Reinke will become president & CEO of trade group the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) at the end of the year, stepping into the position from her previous post leading third party logistics (3PL) trade group the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), both organizations said today.

Reinke will take her new job upon the retirement of Joni Casey at the end of the year. Casey had announced in July that she would step down after 27 years at the helm of IANA.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dock strike: Shippers seek ways to minimize the damage

Dock strike: Shippers seek ways to minimize the damage

As the hours tick down toward a “seemingly imminent” strike by East Coast and Gulf Coast dockworkers, experts are warning that the impacts of that move would mushroom well-beyond the actual strike locations, causing prevalent shipping delays, container ship congestion, port congestion on West coast ports, and stranded freight.

However, a strike now seems “nearly unavoidable,” as no bargaining sessions are scheduled prior to the September 30 contract expiration between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) in their negotiations over wages and automation, according to the transportation law firm Scopelitis, Garvin, Light, Hanson & Feary.

Keep ReadingShow less
Wreaths Across America seeks carriers for December mission
Wreaths Across America

Wreaths Across America seeks carriers for December mission

National nonprofit Wreaths Across America (WAA) kicked off its 2024 season this week with a call for volunteers. The group, which honors U.S. military veterans through a range of civic outreach programs, is seeking trucking companies and professional drivers to help deliver wreaths to cemeteries across the country for its annual wreath-laying ceremony, December 14.

“Wreaths Across America relies on the transportation industry to move the mission. The Honor Fleet, composed of dedicated carriers, professional drivers, and other transportation partners, guarantees the delivery of millions of sponsored veterans’ wreaths to their destination each year,” Courtney George, WAA’s director of trucking and industry relations, said in a statement Tuesday. “Transportation partners benefit from driver retention and recruitment, employee engagement, positive brand exposure, and the opportunity to give back to their community’s veterans and military families.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Krish Nathan of SDI Element Logic

Krish Nathan of SDI Element Logic

In Person interview: Krish Nathan of SDI Element Logic

Krish Nathan is the Americas CEO for SDI Element Logic, a provider of turnkey automation solutions and sortation systems. Nathan joined SDI Industries in 2000 and honed his project management and engineering expertise in developing and delivering complex material handling solutions. In 2014, he was appointed CEO, and in 2022, he led the search for a strategic partner that could expand SDI’s capabilities. This culminated in the acquisition of SDI by Element Logic, with SDI becoming the Americas branch of the company.

A native of the U.K., Nathan received his bachelor’s degree in manufacturing engineering from Coventry University and has studied executive leadership at Cranfield University.

Keep ReadingShow less