It seems to me that there is more to the story about this company closing than meets the eye. I have had first hand dealings with both FSIS and USDA as a upper management employee. Every plant I was responsible for had either School Lunch Programs or EU business. The last plant that I was responsible had all of the above plus a Kosher program. Anybody that is in this business or is planning to do so has to know they will be dealing with these government agencies and should be fully aware of pressure and stress that goes along with it. Whether you accept it or not they are basically your not so silent partner.

There is a difference between being put out of business and simply throwing in the towel. There is no question that both of the above mentioned agencies can be most difficult to work with, and there are many gray areas that will create vigorous negotiations by both company and agency. Some days you will slay the dragon but somedays the dragon slays you. I could list hundreds of incidents that would make the average business man jump out of a 10 story building. But the one thing I learned is that if you feel you are in the right then you must challenge, challenge, and challenge even more. Your business and  livelihood of your employees demand it. And yes it will be costly in time and money.

There are two very important rules that must be established if you are either in the meat business or planning to get into it. Number one is solid good record keeping, the other is maintaining a good relationship with inspection service. Constant daily communication is a must. If you take a combative stance you will loose every time. If you hide documentation from them you will suffer. I leaned that the hard way. When I changed my thinking about the fact that these agencies were the bad guys, and we the company were the good guys is when things began to change for me and my businesses.

There is something to note here as well. Many of the latest's food laws & regulations that have been implemented by FSIS and USDA came from the plants that they monitored including HACCP. Not from the agencies. The agencies lean from the plants, especially the plants that have stellar Quality Control programs and in plant labs. Remember that all FSIS workers are human beings just like us, they are not all rocket scientist. They learn by observation. Sure the IIC (Inspector in Charge) is a professional and certified veterinarian. He works for USDA but is in charge of the FSIS crews.  

Some companies settle to meet the agencies standard regulations, but the successful companies go above and beyond the standards put forth by the agencies.