US food import rules create uncertainty for Canadian truckers

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published interim final rules requiring prior notice of imported food shipments and registration of food facilities. These rules, which will be subject to a 75 day comment period, would require pre-notification of cross border food shipments at least two hours before arrival at the border.

In addition, the rules would require domestic and foreign food facilities that manufacture, process, pack or hold food for human or animal consumption in the United States to register with the agency by December 12. The new rule on the registration of food facilities stipulates that “Transport vehicles that hold food only in the usual course of their business as carriers” do not have to register with the FDA.

“While we are still examining the details of the interim final rules, it is clear that FDA has come at least part way towards meeting the concerns of industry,” said David Bradley, CEO, Canadian Trucking Alliance.

The proposed rule issued earlier this year would have required that importers give notice by noon the day before the arrival of a shipment of food into the United States for all modes of transportation, including truck. FDA has advised that the final regulation could see time frames further reduced as part of the FDA-CBP (Customs and Border Protection) plan to coordinate border-management activities more efficiently.

The FDA rules differ from advance cargo information rules proposed by US Customs and Border Protection. Under the CBP proposal, shipments qualified under the FAST program would be subject to a pre-notification interval of only 30 minutes and one hour for all other imports.

“We remain concerned about differences between the FDA rules and advance cargo information rules proposed by CBP. Carriers are the ones who will bear the brunt of border delays if there is any break-down in the information flow among food importers, customs brokers, the CBP and the FDA,” said Bradley.