A single import refusal may prompt FDA to list the exporter for future import detentions. Urner Barry maintains a database of all seafood rejections, so you can determine if your supplier has a violation using Foreign Trade Data.

Gutting says, “If you think that there were a lot of Import Refusals last year - you're right. The total for seafood in 2011 is 2,776, up 50 percent from 2010.

This three-year increase appears to be partly the result of an increase in FDA inspectors and inspections, rather than a decrease in industry compliance. FDA's budget proposals for FY 2012, for example, explain that FDA field inspections of food imports rose 23 percent to 170,392 in FY 2010 saying:

“With the increase in funding, FDA was able to bring on a significant number of new investigators. Field exams play a significant role in new investigator training . . . .”

Looking to the future FDA told Congress that it plans to better target its food import inspections in 2012 rather than increase their total number. However, whether the number of FDA inspections levels off this year, and what impact this will have on Import Refusals, remains to be seen.

Republished with permission from SeafoodNews.com