**Testimony of**

**Richard Roop, Ph.D.**

**Senior Vice President, Science and Regulatory Affairs**

**Tyson Foods, Inc.**

**Before the**

**House Committee on Agriculture**

**October 30, 2007**

Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of this committee. My name is
Dr. Rick Roop, and I manage food safety, quality assurance and
laboratory services for Tyson Foods. Tyson is the world's largest
producer of meat and poultry, as well as the Nation's second largest
food company. We are highly committed to food safety innovations, and I
thank you for inviting me here today to talk about our company's efforts
to lower the incidence of *E. coli 0157:H7* in beef.

*[Preventing Pathogens in Beef]{.underline}*

As you can see from the chart below (which was constructed using data
from USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service), the incidence rate of
*E. coli 0157:H7* in ground beef has declined since 2000. For 2007, FSIS
has indicated there is a slight increase in the incidence rate, and also
an increase in beef recalls due to *E. coli 0157:H7*. It is noteworthy
that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports *E. coli*
related illnesses in 2007 at the same level as 2006. Overall, as the
industry continues to find better technologies and product handling
procedures; the decline in incidence is expected to continue.
![](media/image1.png){width="5.992361111111111in"
height="3.9451388888888888in"}

Tyson operates nearly 100 food processing plants in 22 states and around
the world. Our eight beef plants produce one-fourth of the beef in the
U.S. With such a significant role in the market -- not to mention the
trust Tyson has earned from consumers and our brand name reputation --
Tyson team members utilize state-of-the-art food safety technologies and
techniques in our plants. We employ risk assessment, training, testing,
special handling, anti-microbial treatments, refrigeration and
sanitation to get the job done.

When it comes to beef, we assume that every head of cattle entering our
facility is contaminated with pathogens. Our goal is to prevent the
potentially contaminated parts of the animal -- the exterior of the
animal and the interior of its digestive tract -- from touching the
uncontaminated parts: the meat. And we use many tools and technologies
to further prevent contamination and preserve safety.

*[Tyson Beef Safety Programs]{.underline}*

Several state-of-the-art methods to prevent contamination and preserve
beef safety are used within Tyson fresh meat facilities. Among the key
practices are: hygienic hide and viscera removal; use of steam vacuums
on key areas on the carcass; use of organic acid solutions on the
surface of carcasses and parts; treating carcasses with a final thermal
pasteurization; using antimicrobial carcass washes; quickly chilling all
carcasses and parts; managing the cold chain from start to finish and
finally, using extensive testing to verify that our process controls
work and the products are safe.

Three key food safety programs developed at Tyson to reduce pathogens in
beef include the "Niche-Buster^™^," "Carcass Thermal Pasteurization" and
"Tyson Total N60^™^" programs. These are all examples of effective and
proactive food safety enhancements that were direct results of Tyson's
commitment to risk-assessment, innovation and continuous improvement.

Niche-Buster^™^targets microorganisms that could be harbored in niche
environments, e.g. seams and cracks of the equipment or facilities. The
program is employed in every Tyson beef slaughter and processing plant.
A constant search and destroy effort is undertaken by our plant quality
and sanitation experts to eliminate these harborage areas for bacteria.
Originally for use in preventing Listeria contamination in ready-to-eat
plants, Niche-Buster^™^has proven to be extremely helpful in preventing
*E. coli 0157:H7* cross-contamination in Tyson beef plants.

The "Carcass Thermal Pasteurization" technology blasts every beef
carcass with sufficient heat to raise the surface temperature above
160F, which is an immediate kill point for pathogens on the carcass
surface. It is highly effective against all pathogens, and is a
validated Critical Control Point (CCP) in all of our beef slaughter
plants' HACCP plans.

"Tyson Total N60^™^" is a nickname for a Tyson-developed, extremely
comprehensive and sensitive testing system to prevent *E. coli 0157:H7*
from contaminating ground beef. Tyson tests all raw beef components
destined for ground beef production. The Tyson Total N60^™^ program
provides a 95 percent or greater assurance of finding and eliminating E.
coli 0157:H7 from beef which is used for ground product. Tyson Total
N60^™^ is among our most powerful food safety tools, as it augments the
other antimicrobial programs. It is so powerful that it has been adopted
across the industry and recognized by the USDA. Tyson believes that
programs such as Tyson Total N60^™^ that find and remove 0157:H7
containing meat from the ground beef supply chain, have contributed
significantly to the significant decline in incidence the U.S. over the
last several years.

Tyson Foods' dedication to safe, quality food is buttressed by the
programs and controls we have to deliver on our promise of providing
safe foods. From our laboratories, to our product and process monitoring
programs, to our HACCP verification processes, we are focused on
"feeding our families, the nation, and the world with trusted food
products," a phrase you will find in our company's core values.

*[Our Food Safety and Quality Assurance Team]{.underline}*

Tyson Foods Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA) Team consists of
approximately 2,500 professionals. This team works side by side with
production to ensure the safety and quality of every product. FSQA Team
Members execute and manage all phases of the Company's food safety and
quality assurance programs including:

-   Food safety and sanitation,

-   Policy adherence and regulatory compliance,

-   Laboratory services and statistics support,

-   Product and process performance,

-   Good manufacturing practices, and

-   Food safety and quality training.

Our organizational structure is built to enhance independent, nonbiased
decisions for FSQA managers. All FSQA team members, including myself,
report parallel to Operating groups.

The safety of our products is also closely monitored by a Food Safety
Team located at each facility. These multi departmental teams
systematically evaluate key aspects of our production processes to
prevent potential food safety concerns. The Food Safety Team will then
work with their facilities to develop, implement, and monitor controls
and procedures to drive continuous improvement.

Training is a key success factor for continuous improvement. Tyson
Foods' Team Members are provided on-going food safety and quality
assurance training. For example, in partnership with the University of
Arkansas, Tyson Foods helped developed the Food Safety Training and
Education Initiative.

Tyson Foods also partners with Texas A&M University to offer one of the
few industry-sponsored training programs approved by the International
HACCP Alliance.

*[Food Safety Laboratories]{.underline}*

The Tyson Food Safety and Laboratory Services Network are recognized
throughout the industry as research leaders in serological testing, food
chemistry, microbiological testing, food safety research, and
environmental water testing. Our accreditations include numerous federal
government agencies.

-   USDA-FSIS Food Chemistry,

-   USDA-FSIS Pesticide Analysis,

-   USDA/AMS Russian Export/Chemistry and Microbiological Testing,

-   National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) for Testing Avian Influenza
    and Mycoplasma synoviae and Mycoplasma gallisepticum, and

-   USDA-APHIS for Salmonella Analysis.

Tyson Food Safety and Laboratory Services Network includes 17
laboratories across the country. This includes a 25,000-square-foot,
state-of-the-art food testing and research laboratory at Tyson Foods'
World Headquarters in Arkansas. This laboratory is dual certified under
the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) quality
management system standard ISO 9001:2000 and the ISO/IEC 17025 standard
for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. In addition,
seven other Tyson Foods regional and corporate laboratories are
certified under the same ISO/IEC 17025 standard.

Tyson Foods also has 61 plant-based Quality Assurance laboratories. All
tests conducted in these laboratories are thoroughly detailed in the
corporate Laboratory Manual. A 3 ½ day microbiology and chemistry course
is offered regularly for management personnel and laboratory technicians
located in our processing and rendering plants. Audits of these
laboratories underline Tyson Foods\' continuing commitment to quality.

*[Food Defense]{.underline}*

Tyson Foods takes extraordinary measures for protection against
deliberate acts of food product sabotage. We require each facility to
take appropriate measures to ensure the security and protection of the
food products they produce. Specifically, we require all facilities and
co-packers to conduct vulnerability assessments. From this assessment,
each facility then develops and maintains a facility food defense plan.
This plan identifies the measures the facility will employ to avoid risk
involving deliberate product tampering. Tyson Foods also requires each
facility develop a response strategy in the event a threat to the food
products they produce is made or detected.

*[Internal and External Food Safety Audits and Inspections]{.underline}*

Tyson Foods' facilities receive routine internal quality assurance and
food safety assessments. These assessments are conducted by quality
assurance managers. They focus on:

-   Critical food safety elements,

-   Sanitation performance,

-   Company policy adherence, and

-   Regulatory compliance.

Each facility is also audited in accordance with the Tyson Foods
Comprehensive Food Safety Audit Program. These internal audits are
composed of audit team members that are independent of the facility
being audited.

Tyson Foods' facilities also receive periodic third party audits of
their food safety systems and good manufacturing practices (GMP's).
These reviews, conducted by or on behalf of our customers, are performed
by nationally recognized independent auditing firms

These independent audits serve as additional verification that each
facility is producing safe and quality food products. They also verify
our compliance with applicable regulations, company policies, and
customer specification requirements.

Tyson Foods' commitment to food safety is premised on the basis that
food safety is not a point of competition between manufacturers. We
openly share food safety research and technologies with our peers and
colleagues. With the support of our Laboratory Services Group, Tyson
Foods' partners with government, academia, trade associations, and other
industry members to sponsor food safety research. We have made
substantial contributions to research covering *E.coli* O157:H7,
*Salmonella,* Avian Influenza*,* Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
(BSE)*, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter*, and other public health
issues and initiatives aimed at improving food safety.

*[Conclusion]{.underline}*

We have made tremendous progress in learning how to improve meat safety
over the past decade. But we understand that we can't rest -- the world
continues to change, including the microbial world. Tyson, in addition
to our colleagues at other food companies, are doing everything we can
to produce safe, quality products every day. Thank you for your time and
attention.