NCBFAA: Food safety not broker responsibility

NCBFAA: Food safety not broker responsibility The National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America in a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Thursday said the responsibility for safety of imported foods under the Food Safety Modernization Act rests on the shoulders of the people who have knowledge and control over the supply chain, not the brokers.
   In the NCBFAA's view, these are the U.S. owner, consignee who purchases the product, or a U.S. person who specifically takes on the role as the agent of the foreign owner for this purpose.
   'It will not serve the goals of the act to place this responsibility on third parties (customs brokers) simply because they are at a convenient point in the supply chain, yet are not in a position to know first-hand details about the product or to control who supplies the product,' said NCBFAA President Jeffrey Coppersmith.
   When attempting to clarify who is an importer under the Food Safety Modernization Act, Coppersmith encouraged the FDA to consider:
   ' Choosing 'substance over form,' meaning in general, the “importer” should be a person with a financial interest in the product and the FDA should not rely exclusively on terms, such as consignee, agent or importer-of-record, which are used in different ways in different contexts.
   ' Requiring affidavits signed by the U.S. agent and foreign food supplier accepting this specific safety role for the purpose of FDA food importations and that no one should have that responsibility forced on them by virtue of their presence in the supply chain.
   ' Recognizing the commercial role of the parties and that a customs broker is not an importer with a financial interest in the importation; 'confusing the two is like confusing the travel agent with the traveler.'
   ' Defining the term “importer,” “consignee” or “agent” for determining the admissibility of food products, and taking care not to confuse definitions and terms used for other purposes under other statutes.

Coppersmith

   'We think the importer for FDA purposes should be the person who caused the goods to come to the U.S. — that is, the party in the U.S. with a financial interest in the product or a U.S. agent designated by a foreign manufacturer or supplier through a specific written agreement between the foreign entity and the U.S. agent and filed with the FDA,' Coppersmith wrote in the letter.
   'Either of these parties should be required to register with the FDA and receive a registration number, which would be provided at the time of entry,' he added. 'This would provide the certainty required for FDA and would ensure that a true party in interest is responsible for the food product.'