FDA Grants Cottage Cheese Exemption

A federal decision could ease regulatory requirements for some cottage cheese manufacturers while maintaining existing food safety protections, according to the National Milk Producers Federation.

The federation says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced last month that Grade “A” cottage cheese will be exempt from added requirements under the agency’s Food Traceability Rule.

The organization says the exemption removes additional record keeping requirements tied to foods on the Food Traceability List. Cottage cheese manufacturers already meet strict standards under the Grade “A” Pasteurized Milk Ordinance and are regulated through the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments.

The federation notes it supported passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act in 2011 and agrees that food traceability and strong record keeping are important for food safety. However, the organization says it has long disagreed with the FDA’s approach to identifying so called high risk foods.

After years of discussion, the federation says the FDA agreed that existing safeguards already in place make extra traceability steps unnecessary, reducing burdens while maintaining strong food safety protections.