Small Entity Compliance Guide (SECG)

February 3, 2020

The Food and Drug Administration today announced the availability of a Small Entity Compliance Guide (SECG) to help packaged food manufacturers meet federal standards in the final rule “ Food Labeling: Revision of the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels.” The final rule, which was published on May 27, 2016, amends the labeling regulations for foods and dietary supplements to provide updated nutrition information on the label to help consumers maintain healthy dietary practices.

The SECG is aimed at small businesses and restates, in plain language and in a question and answer format, the provisions in the final rule. It includes the following sections in addition to references:

Who is subject to the rule?
What foods are covered by the rule?
What foods are not covered by the rule?
Which nutrients must newly be declared, and what changes have been made to nutrients previously required or allowed to be declared?
How do I comply with recordkeeping requirements?
How have the values of nutrients been updated?
How do I comply with the formatting requirements?’
When must I comply with the rule?
Why must I comply with the rule?

Compliance with the updated Nutrition Facts labeling regulations was required by January 1, 2020, for manufacturers with $10 million or more in annual food sales, while manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales will have an additional year to comply. During the first 6 months following the January 1, 2020, compliance date, FDA plans to work cooperatively with manufacturers to meet the new Nutrition Facts label requirements and will not focus on enforcement actions regarding these requirements during that time. FDA intends to exercise enforcement discretion to give manufacturers of single-ingredient sugars such as honey and maple syrup, and certain cranberry products, until July 1, 2021, to comply.

For Compliance,please write to fwqrcservices@gmail.com

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DEVELOPMENT OF A QUALITY CULTURE

Hi, Greetings from FWQRC……

Today’s topic is about the development of a Quality Culture and the supporting role of international standard development

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Quality Culture is a term being discussed with increasing regulatory among quality professionals as well as more widely outside of the quality profession, as organisations and governments consider continuous challenges including productivity, competitive strategy and reputation protection.Within a quality culture, everyone is involved in the ongoing pursuit of excellence

Pharmaceutical culture of quality

Each worker or team is both a supplier & customer within their organisation and takes responsibility for the quality of their output. In this setting, there is no need to check the final products as an incremental review has occurred on an ongoing basis at each stage

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Conversely, the absence of a quality culture is likely to be characterized by an absence of individual or team responsibility and the need for costly & time consuming inspection and test regimes which add little value

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Conclusion: Given the more elusive nature of culture compared to other facts of organisation life, it is not unreasonable for individuals to look for external sources of guidance. Assistance may be required to understand current culture, determine that culture which might best address requirements and to help define & deliver actions to support the quality culture journey.

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Write to fwqrcservices@gmail.com to understand your organisations current culture, determine that culture and deliver actions to support the quality culture

FDA, USDA and EPA announce joint platform to streamline information about agricultural biotechnology products

Hi,Welcome to FWQRC Regulatory Focus News Letter…

Today, in recognition of January 2020 as National Biotechnology Month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency launched a Unified Website for Biotechnology Regulation. The website streamlines information about the three regulatory agencies charged with overseeing agriculture biotechnology products and is part of President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Order on Modernizing the Regulatory Framework for Agricultural Biotechnology Products.

“This is a time of unprecedented scientific innovation. Agricultural biotechnology promises to bring dynamic new products to the marketplace,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn, M.D. “At the FDA, we are committed to fostering flexible, risk-based approaches in this field while upholding our mission of protecting and promoting both human and animal health and animal well-being, for example by reducing their susceptibility to diseases like novel influenzas and resistance to zoonotic or foreign animal diseases. Our approach balances our internationally respected, science-based review standards with our ongoing risk-based regulatory approaches to ensure the safety of our food supply.”

The Unified Website for Biotechnology Regulation describes the federal review process for certain biotechnology products and allows users to submit questions to the three agencies. The goals of this website are to provide enhanced customer service to innovators and developers, while ensuring Americans continue to enjoy the safest and most affordable food supply in the world and can learn more about the safe use of biotechnology innovations.

In October 2018, the FDA announced its Plant and Animal Biotechnology Innovation Action Plan, which focuses on the agency’s risk-based regulatory approach. This approach will help secure confidence in the reliability and performance of plant and animal-based innovative products for consumers and America’s global trading partners. Making sure these products are safe is critical to maintaining consumer and commercial confidence in them and will help them to realize their full potential benefits for human and animal health.

The FDA uses a flexible, risk-based approach to the oversight of plant- and animal- derived products of biotechnology, focusing on safety and, where applicable, effectiveness. The agency’s approach includes, when appropriate, updating and clarifying science-based policies to support innovation and ensure that our regulatory processes are efficient, predictable, and proportionate to risk.

The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.

Cosmetic Registration Reports

Hi, Welcome to FWQRC Regulatory Focus News Letter

About Blog FWQRC Regulatory focus pharma news, views and analysis of healthcare in a rapidly changing world. Not only do we keep you connected with the latest trends in pharma, we can also help you develop and bring to life your own thoughts, ideas and inspirations to enable you and your business to become key pharma influencers

The information in the tables below is a monthly report of activity in FDA’s Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program (VCRP)

VCRP Monthly Status Report

Because the law does not require cosmetic firms to register their establishments or file their product formulations with FDA, participation in this program is voluntary. For this reason, the information below does not indicate the total number of companies manufacturing or marketing cosmetics in this country, or all cosmetic products on the market.

Activity for December 2019

• Number of online accounts activated this month: 103
• Number of products filed this month: 593
• Total activity since the launch of the new online system, September 20, 2018
• Number of active online accounts: 2,816
• Number of active cosmetic establishment registrations: 1,395
• Number of labelers that have filed product formulations*: 650
• Number of filed products: 8,333
• Number of product formulations discontinued**: 373
• Number of product formulations rejected***: 958
• Total activity since the VCRP was established, in 1972
• Number of active cosmetic establishment registrations: 4,392
• Number of labelers that have filed product formulations*: 3,071
• Number of active products on file: 68,838
• Number of product formulations discontinued**: 82,094
• Number of product formulations rejected***: 5,101

First FDA-approved vaccine for the prevention of Ebola virus disease

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today the approval of Ervebo, the first FDA-approved vaccine for the prevention of Ebola virus disease (EVD), caused by Zaire ebolavirus in individuals 18 years of age and older.

Cases of EVD are very rare in the U.S., and those that have occurred have been the result of infections acquired by individuals in other countries who then traveled to the U.S., or health care workers who became ill after treating patients with EVD.

“While the risk of Ebola virus disease in the U.S. remains low, the U.S. government remains deeply committed to fighting devastating Ebola outbreaks in Africa, including the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” said Anna Abram, FDA Deputy Commissioner for Policy, Legislation, and International Affairs.

“Today’s approval is an important step in our continuing efforts to fight Ebola in close coordination with our partners across the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as our international partners, such as the World Health Organization.

These efforts, including today’s landmark approval, reflect the FDA’s unwavering dedication to leveraging our expertise to facilitate the development and availability of safe and effective medical products to address urgent public health needs and fight infectious diseases, as part of our vital public health mission.”

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