Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/721587
BY DAVID BALLARD ATTORNEY, LAW OFFICE OF DAVID G. BALLARD A nother layer of federal regulation, which is premised in large part on industry best practices, has been superimposed upon the transportation industry. It directly impacts the principal players: the shipper, the loader, the broker, the carrier, and the receiver. e Final Rule for the Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food was published on April 6, 2016, with respective compliance dates of April 6, 2017 for covered businesses other than small businesses and April 6, 2018 for small businesses. The basis for liability under the rule rests upon the standard set forth in 21 CFR §1.908(a)(3) that "... all transportation operations must be conducted under such conditions and controls necessary to prevent food from becoming unsafe during transportation operations ... ." Accordingly, under 21 CFR §1.908(a)(6), "(i)f a shipper, loader, receiver, or carrier becomes aware of an indication of a possible material failure of temperature control or other conditions that may render the food unsafe during transportation, the food shall not be sold or otherwise distributed, and these persons must take appropriate action including, as necessary, communication with other parties to ensure that the food is not sold or otherwise distributed unless a determination is made by a qualified individual that the temperature deviation or other condition did not render the food unsafe." e term "transportation operations" under 21 CFR §1.904 encompasses "all activities associated with food transportation that may affect the sanitary condition of food including cleaning, inspection, maintenance, loading and unloading, and operation of vehicles and transportation equipment" but not "any activities associated with the transportation of food that is completely enclosed by a container except a food that requires temperature control for safety, compressed food gases, food contact substances as defined in section 409(h)(6) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, human food byproducts transported for use as animal food without further processing, or live food animals except molluscan shellfish" and "any transportation activities that are performed by a farm." e stage is set by the shipper because by definition under 21 CFR §1.904, the shipper is the "person, e.g., the manufacturer or a freight broker, who arranges for the transportation of food ... ." is term is broader than the one defined under the federal interstate transportation statute, 49 USC §13102(13), which identifies a shipper as "any person who is identified as the shipper, consignor, or consignee on the face of the bill of lading; owns the goods being transported; and pays his or FINAL RULE SANITARY TRANSPORTATION OF HUMAN AND ANIMAL FOOD 14 IT MAGAZINE Vo l . 1 0 , N o . 5