Agricultural Quality Assessment Division QAD 545 Procedure 

Marketing 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0258 February 14, 2024

Service Washington, DC 20250 Page 1 of 5 

Destination Examination – Fresh or Frozen Products

I. Purpose

This document provides procedures for performing a destination examination on fresh RTC or frozen 

RTC and RTE products. 

II. Policy

A destination examination is a third-party evaluation performed by USDA, AMS graders (graders) that 

can be requested when the condition of livestock and poultry products has been questioned at the point 

of delivery. The grader examines the product for quality and organoleptic factors which are 

summarized in a written examination report, QAD 545A: Destination Examination Report following 

the examination. This final examination of commodity products determines whether products have 

arrived at destination in an acceptable/satisfactory condition, have not been tampered with, and are 

ready for further distribution. Each destination examination can also serve as a valuable opportunity to 

hear the concerns of the recipient and have a discussion about product quality. 

III. Procedures

A. Examination Requests

A destination examination may be requested for one or more of the following attributes listed below. 

Graders must work with their supervisor to coordinate the logistics of the destination examinations 

such as time, location, point of contact and completion of the LP-109: Application for Service. At the 

request of the recipient or supplying vendor, additional attributes not listed below, may be examined. 

The grader may use their discretion to focus the examination on the attribute(s) of the product being 

questioned. When certain attributes are not examined, graders must mark that section as N/A for not 

applicable on the examination report. 

Condition attributes:

1. The identity and quantity of the product. 

2. The condition and type of shipping containers. 

3. The internal temperature of the product.

4. The extent of visible damage from shifting pallets due to improper palletization/stacking or 

mishandling. 

5. The organoleptic condition of fresh or frozen product including examination for evidence of 

temperature abuse or contamination with foreign materials.
Agricultural Quality Assessment Division QAD 545 Procedure 

Marketing 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0258 February 14, 2024

Service Washington, DC 20250 Page 2 of 5 

B. Shipping Documents

Obtain the shipping certificate (LP-210P) or Certificate of Conformance (COC) and bill of lading 

which accompanied the shipping container. Verify that the seal numbers are the same as shown on the 

certificate. Load information including the shipping date, destination examination location, shipping 

facility location, production location, seal number, purchase order number, sales order number, and 

item number should be transferred to the appropriate fields on the examination report. 

C. Attribute Examinations

1. Container Quantity

The total number of containers for each destination examination will be verified by the grader. The 

total must be recorded in the appropriate field on the examination report. If this number does not 

match the total stated on the shipping certificate and/or the bill of lading, a note will be made in the 

remarks. When applicable, record the total pounds of the load by multiplying the total number of cases 

by the labeled net weight of each case.

An official recount is required when the delivery vehicle arrives with broken or missing seals or other 

evidence of suspected tampering. In this case, graders must personally count all containers on the unit 

and record any evidence of tampering found. If necessary, note the number of cases short and the total 

pounds short on the report. 

2. Packaging/Packing

Determine the condition of the packaging/packing of the product using the method and appropriate 

form for lot sampling outlined in QAD 617: Packaging and Packing. Final examination results must 

be transferred to the examination report. When product is also being examined for temperature, the 

samples used for this examination may also be used for temperature. 

3. Temperature

Determine the internal temperature of the product by using the method outlined in QAD 613: Frozen 

Product Examination. Holes in the primary packaging resulting from these examinations are to be 

covered using the self-adhesive label markers used to identify official samples. Remove any moisture 

or frost from the area to be covered prior to affixing the label. Record the results of temperature

examination in the remarks section of the examination report. 

Frozen product must arrive at destination at an average internal product temperature not to exceed

10°F (-12.2°C), with no individual temperature exceeding 15°F (-9.4°C). Fresh product must arrive at 

destination at an average internal product temperature between 26°F (-3.3°C) and 40°F (4.4°C). 

Product not meeting these criteria is to be rejected and handled as outlined in Section E of this 

procedure. 
Agricultural Quality Assessment Division QAD 545 Procedure 

Marketing 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0258 February 14, 2024

Service Washington, DC 20250 Page 3 of 5 

4. Palletization/Stacking or Other Mishandling of Product

Improper palletization, stacking, and mishandling can result in damage to the product. Graders must 

visually examine the entire load to determine if any pallets are leaning and/or if any cases on the lower 

layers have been damaged. Leaning pallets not only indicate that product may have shifted during 

transport, but unstable pallets cause issues for the recipient when putting product into storage. 

Destination examinations can be requested due to obvious damage noticed by the recipient. Graders 

are encouraged to take numerous pictures of affected product to document the issue in a visual format. 

In these instances, the grader should use their discretion to determine whether a stationary lot 

examination is necessary to assess the condition of the entire load. If a stationary lot examination is 

deemed unnecessary due to obvious product damage on a portion of the load, graders must work with 

the facility staff to assess the entire load and segregate the affected product from the acceptable 

product. The total quantity of damaged containers and remaining acceptable product should be 

recorded in the remarks so that a partial rejection may occur. Damaged product should be handled as 

outlined in Section D.2. of this procedure. 

5. Organoleptic Condition, Temperature Abuse, and Contamination

Graders must use sensory observation to examine the product for any organoleptic defects using the 

method outlined in QAD 614: Organoleptic Examination using QAD 615: Lot Definition to determine 

the appropriate containers to sample. If a recipient has requested a destination examination due to 

specific organoleptic attributes of the product, graders must investigate those specific attributes and 

provide their determination. If a microwave oven is available, this may involve thawing or reheating

the product to facilitate a proper organoleptic examination or observation for internal contamination of 

foreign materials. 

Frozen RTC products contain a normal amount of purge within the package that may appear opaque 

clear to yellowish/pinkish which is acceptable. Frozen RTE and RTC products normally have a thin 

layer of white frost on the product within the bag as a result of the normal freezing process which is 

also acceptable. If the recipient has requested the destination examination due to suspected 

temperature abuse such as thawing and refreezing, graders must perform a stationary lot examination

for freezing defects. Generally, due to variation in product packaging and product type, evidence of 

thawing and refreezing is very subjective, partially thawed product would be the main indicator. 

Product may also be frozen or stuck inside the cases due to condensation forming on thawing product 

and refreezing. Due to the difficult nature of making this determination, graders are encouraged to 

take photos of the product and confer with their supervisor. Their supervisor may then consult with 

their Regional and National Office to make a final determination.

Generally, it is unlikely that product will thaw and refreeze during shipment. Product frozen to 0°F 

takes a long time to thaw depending on the ambient air temperature. Trailers with freezer units which 

are designed to hold temperature are incapable of significantly lowering the temperature of product 
Agricultural Quality Assessment Division QAD 545 Procedure 

Marketing 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0258 February 14, 2024

Service Washington, DC 20250 Page 4 of 5 

enough to functionally refreeze thawed product. The bill of lading would show the shipping date 

indicating how many days the product has been in transit. 

D. Destination Examination Report Submittal

The grader must sign and date the completed report and email it to their supervisor. The supervisor 

will forward a copy to the national office. Graders must maintain a copy of the report in their personal 

records and supervisors must file a digital copy of the report in shared folders as specified by their 

Regional Office. All records should be destroyed 1 year after the close of the fiscal year in which they 

were created. 

1. Acceptable Findings

For acceptable shipments, the grader performing the destination examination must place the following 

statement in the Remarks Section of the examination report: 

“Product represented by this report was examined and was found to be in acceptable condition.”

2. Unacceptable Findings

For destination examinations that resulted in unacceptable product, the grader must immediately notify 

their supervisor via phone and email the examination report along with any photos of defective 

product. They should remain onsite until given further guidance. When necessary, the supervisor or 

Regional Office may coordinate with the National Poultry Office to make a final determination. The 

supplying vendor will be notified and given the opportunity to pick up any unacceptable product. The 

official stamps must be obliterated under the supervision of the grader on any product found to be out 

of compliance during the destination examination before the hold tape may be removed. Stamp 

obliteration may occur on-site at the destination or at the origin plant when the product is returned. 

Destination Examination Reports covering unacceptable product must carry the following statement:

“Destination Examination – product covered by this report does not meet the requirements of the

Commodity Specification.” 

Also, include the reason for the rejection: 

Example: High temperatures

“Product was found in unacceptable condition due to high temperature. Product temped was found to 

be at an average of 21°F when the FPPS requires product to be 10°F or below at destination.” 

Example: Partial rejection due to damaged cases

“57 cases of product were found in unacceptable condition due to torn packaging/packing resulting in 

exposure of the product. The official stamps on the defective product cases were obliterated and the 
Agricultural Quality Assessment Division QAD 545 Procedure 

Marketing 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0258 February 14, 2024

Service Washington, DC 20250 Page 5 of 5 

product was disposed of at the warehouse under USDA supervision. The remaining 1,243 cases were 

found to be in acceptable condition.” 

E. Reporting Billing Hours, Expenses, and Volume 

For any new service locations, an LP-109 and LP-109A must be completed by the vendor with their 

billing information and destination examination location. The completed forms must be emailed to the 

Business Operations Branch (BOB) prior to providing service in order to create a request number 

(QAD.BusinessOps@usda.gov). When results of the destination exam determine that the product is 

unacceptable or a partial rejection occurs the fees, expenses, and associated costs for the examination 

must be billed to the vendor. 

Alternatively, when results of the destination exam determine that the product is acceptable, the fees, 

expenses, and associated costs for the examination must be billed to Commodity Procurement (CP). 

The supervisor must email the BOB at the above email address requesting a new request number with 

the same work location using the CP billing account number. 

The appropriate unscheduled request number acquired from the BOB must be used for entries in work 

reports and expense logs in ABI. State trust states must transfer the information from the LP-109 to 

their own equivalent form(s) and make appropriate entries into their work reports and expense logs. 

The volume of product examined must be recorded in ABI as “DE” in the “Acceptance Service”

section and “NG Dest. Inspection” in the “Officially Graded” section. 

IV. Supersedes

QAD 545 Procedure: Poultry Condition Examination, August 31, 2018. 

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