FSIS Leadership Changes, Import Refusal Data, Consumer Complaints Update

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Constituent Update Friday, April 17 2026

Constituent Update - April 17, 2026

FSIS Leadership Changes

Dr. Melanie Abley now serves as Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Public Health Science (OPHS) at FSIS. Dr. Abley most recently served as the agency’s acting Deputy Director of the Risk Management and Innovations Staff in the Office of Policy and Program Development. In that role, she oversaw development and implementation of FSIS’ risk management strategies.

Mr. Terry Dutko now serves as OPHS Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator. Dutko most recently served as the acting Executive Associate for Laboratory Services within the OPHS Laboratory Regulatory Operations. Before that he led the Midwestern Laboratory as Director, a role he held since 2015. As Director, he coordinated world-class ISO 17025 accredited laboratory analytical services.

You can find these updates, and all personnel changes, on the FSIS website.

FSIS Engagement

On April 10, FSIS Administrator Dr. Justin Ransom addressed attendees at the 2026 Wisconsin Association of Meat Processors Convention in Middleton, Wis. Dr. Ransom spoke about the agency’s commitment to supporting small and very small establishments, including the $20 million in fiscal year (FY) 2026 funds allocated for overtime and holiday inspection fee reductions and the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public input on updating establishment size definitions.

That afternoon, Dr. Ransom led a Small Plant Forum focused on direct engagement with establishment operators. Approximately 30 small and very small processors met with FSIS subject matter experts, Des Moines District Office staff, and representatives from USDA’s Rural Development and the Agricultural Marketing Service. Participants discussed key topics and exchanged questions with agency staff.

Dr. Ransom discusses FSIS support for small and very small meat processors.

On April 14, Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Mindy Brashears and Dr. Ransom spoke at the Meat Institute’s Food Safety and Technical Affairs Committee meeting, where they engaged with industry representatives on current food safety priorities and ongoing agency efforts.

Dr. Brashears and Dr. Ransom discussed FSIS’ focus on advancing science-based policy, strengthening pathogen reduction efforts, and improving how the agency uses data to inform decisions. They addressed ongoing work on Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes and described efforts to modernize operations, enhance training, and support recruitment. Program area leaders also updated attendees on field operations, recall activities, and policy priorities.

Both engagements reflect the agency’s commitment to open communication with stakeholders and to grounding policies and practices in real-world operational experience.

Dr. Brashears discusses Salmonella trends in meat from 2020 to 2025.

FSIS Releases FY 2025 Summary of Consumer Complaints and Surveillance Data

FSIS has posted the FY 2025 annual summary of consumer complaints (Oct. 1, 2024 to Sept. 30, 2025). The summary includes information entered into the FSIS Consumer Complaint Monitoring System. Consumer complaints provide data that informs FSIS’ surveillance and response activities, enabling the agency to identify and investigate reports of potentially unsafe food in commerce and evaluate trends over time. The report includes information on how consumers report complaints to FSIS, the types of complaints reported, and complaint outcomes.

FSIS Updated Import Presented Refused and Import Refusal Reason Datasets

Today, FSIS updated the Import Presented Refused and Import Refusal Reason datasets on the Import and Export Data page. The Import Presented Refused dataset includes lot-level information for import volume along with import refusal data at the lot-level. The Import Refusal Reason is provided as a secondary dataset, providing each refusal reason as its own row to facilitate analysis.

The Import Presented Refused and Import Refusal Reason datasets are updated monthly and posted the third Friday of each month, with data broken out by FY, starting with data from FY 2014 (starting on October 1, 2013) through the most recent FY. These datasets are released in an open, non-proprietary comma separated values (csv) format. Instructions on how to open csv files using Excel are available on the FSIS Sampling web page in the Comma Separated Values Guide section.

Available for Public Comment

FSIS seeks public comments on proposed rules and notices, which are viewable on the FSIS Federal Register & Rulemaking webpage. FSIS is currently seeking comments on the following:

• Until April 20: Maximum Line Speed Under the New Swine Slaughter Inspection System (NSIS)
• Until April 20: Maximum Line Speed Rates for Young Chicken and Turkey Establishments Operating Under the New Poultry Inspection System (NPIS)
• Until May 11: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Nutrition Labeling of Major Cuts of Single-Ingredient Raw Meat or Poultry Products and Ground or Chopped Meat and Poultry Products
• Until May 18: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Public Health Information System: Public Health Information System (PHIS)
• Until May 19: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Procedures for the Notification of New Technology and Requests for Waivers
• Until May 22: Notice of Request to Renew an Approved Information Collection: Voluntary Destruction of Imported Meat, Poultry, and Egg Products
• Until May 26: Notice of Request To Renew an Approved Information Collection: Laboratory Assessment Requests

Policy Update

FSIS notices and directives on public health and regulatory issues are available on the FSIS Policy webpage. The following policy update were recently issued:

FSIS Notice 17-26: Update to Animal Disease Restrictions in the FSIS Export Library

FSIS Notice 16-26: Updated Ordering Instructions for Specialty Supplies, Office Supplies, and Forms

Last Updated: Apr 17, 2026