Technical Assistance and Compliance

 

License & Registration Renewals and Inspection Fee Reporting Webinar - April 21, 2025

The WSDA Animal Feed Program typically hosts a free virtual webinar annually prior to renewals season to give our stakeholders a refresher on the process and an opportunity for questions and answers. Presentation Slides Webinar Recording

Small Business Industry Training - May 14, 2020

Agenda and Speaker Biographies Getting Started Guide for Participating in the WebEx Training

Presentations FDA- FSMA cGMP, HA, and PC for Food for Animals WSDA- 507 cGMP Checklist and PC Inspection Tool Disclaimer: These are only tools and do not guarantee compliance. Please consult the applicable regulation, WSDA or your local animal food program and/or FDA. Self-inspections do not take the place of regulatory inspections, but can guide you to achieving compliance. 507 cGMP self-Inspection Checklist [PDF 1.4 MB] 507 PC self-Inspection Tool [Excel 206 KB] 225 cGMP self-Inspection Checklist [PDF 1.1 MB] FDA- Status of Inspections, Frequent Observations WSDA- 507 cGMP and PC Observations from the Field NGFA- Industry Perspectives of FSMA Rules AFIA- By-products of Human Food Processing Plans distributed as Animal Food  WSDA- Pet Food and Specialty Pet Food Registration  WSDA- Commercial Feed Licensing, Labeling and Inspection Fee Reporting WSDA- Training Wrap-Up Slides Animal Feed Industry Training Youtube Video Playlist Questions and Answers from the Animal Feed Industry Training

Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) requires animal food workers be trained in animal food hygiene and safety and relevant employee health and hygiene. WSDA Animal Feed Program recognizes there are not many educational materials available for animal food manufacturing and handling and we plan on creating some in the near future. Until then, the list below contains links to a variety of sources that could be helpful where applicable.

• AAFCO The Business of Pet Food- Product Handling Safety
• AAFCO List of Affiliated Industry Trade Groups - which may provide or partner with university extensions such as Kansas State University and North Carolina State University to provide resources or classes.
• FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook - was developed from the 2005 FDA Food Code which is a model for retail food safety. However ther are still several good points that should be applicable to animal food employees.
• WA Department of Health- Proper Handwashing Signs
• Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation- Risk Factor Resources - expand the Employee Health box for employee health related posters.
• FAO Good Practices for the Feed Industry
• FDA Video on Safe Animal Feed
• FDA Video on Animal Feed Safety
• FDA Video on Mandatory Reporting of Animal Food Problems
• FDA FSMA Training

Modifiable Employee Training Records Template 

FSMA also requires that this training be documented and associated records be kept for at least two years. WSDA Animal Feed Program developed two simple templates that you can modify to fit your establishment's needs.

• Employee Training Record Template Example1 ^{[Word 14 KB]} for one training event
• Employee Training Record Template Example2 ^{[Word 15 KB]} for multiple training events

Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) requires that plants are suitable for pest prevention and control to reduce the potential for animal food contamination. This may include taking measures to exclude pests from the manufacturing, processing, packing and holding areas; reducing attractants, breeding and harborage areas; and developing a comprehensive pest control plan. Below are some resources that may be helpful in ensuring that your plant protects animal food from contamination from pests:

• K-State Food Plant Sanitation, Pest Exclusion and Facility Design ^{[PDF 260 KB]}
• Purdue University A Pest Control Program ^{[PDF 338 KB]}
• University of Arkansas Food Manufacturing, Processing and Storage Pest Control ^{[PDF 640 KB]}
• National Pest Management Association Pest Management Standards for Food Processing & Handling Facilities ^{[PDF 1.6 MB]}

If an issue is identified at your facility, conducting a Root Cause Analysis can help determine the source of the issue. This can help you solve the problem and prevent it from happening in the future. The following links provides helpful information to assist with your Root Cause Analysis.

• AFDO - A Guide for Conducting Food Safety Root Cause Analysis
• Linked In - What are the key steps for conducting a root cause analysis of a food safety failure? 
• Pew Charitable Trusts - A Guide to Conducting a Food Safety Root Cause Analysis

For more information contact Animal Feed Program Manager, Ashlee-Rose Ferguson at (360) 902-1905 or email at aferguson@agr.wa.gov.

Making sure your producing and distributing safe animal food and ingredients and that your establishment is in compliance with laws and rules is essential. An effective way to increase awareness and compliance with various regulations and prepare for regulatory inspections is to conduct self-inspections. WSDA Animal Feed Program developed tools (below) for this purpose. We also have a video walk through of these tools that might also be helpful.

• Preventive Controls (PC) Self-Inspection Tool (21 C.F.R. 507) ^{[Excel 205 KB]}
• Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) Inspection Checklist for Animal Feed Establishments (21 C.F.R. 507) (AGR 4397 Sample) ^{[PDF 1.44 MB]} 
  • ^​in Spanish ^{[PDF 820 KB]} or Chinese ^[1470 KB]
• Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) Inspection Checklist for Medicated Feed Establishments (21 C.F.R. 225) (AGR 4289 Sample) ^{[PDF 1.13 MB]}
  • ^​​in Spanish ^{[PDF 816 KB]} or Chinese ^[914 KB]

We are interested in continuously improving these resources. Please contact animalfeed@agr.wa.gov or 360-902-1844 to provide feedback.