USDA United States 

Department of 

Agriculture 

Food Safety 

and Inspection 

Service 

Field 

Operations 

Philadelphia District 

Mellon Independence Center 

701 Market Street, Suite 41 OOA - Philadelphia, P A 191 06 

January 30, 2015 

ORIGINAL SENT VIA UPS NEXT DAY AIR 

DELIVERY CONFIRMATJON REQUESTED 

Mr. Michael Redlinski, President/General Manager 

Paul Redlinski & Sons Inc. (M 18870/P-18870) 

19 Seinkiewicz Place 

Buffalo, NY 14216 

NOTICE OF SUSPENSION 

Dear Mr. Redlinski, 

This letter confirms verbal notification by Dr. Jaspreet Gill, Deputy District Manager (DDM), to 

Mr. Frank Dispenza, Plant Manager, at approximately 09:46 am on January 30, 2015, of the 

Food Safety and Inspection Service' s (FSIS) decision to suspend the assignment of FSIS 

Inspection Program Personnel (IPP) at your establishment, Paul Redlinski & Sons Inc. (M 

18870/P-18870), located in Buffalo, NY. This action includes the Fully Cooked Not Shelf Stable 

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) and Raw Non-Intact processes employed at 

your firm. FSIS is taking this action in accordance with the Rules of Practice, Title 9 ofthe Code 

ofFederal Regulation (9 CFR) 500.3(a)(4). 

Background Authority 

The FMIA [21 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.] and the PPIA [21 U.S.C. § 451 et seq.] provides that it is 

essential for the public interest that the health and welfare of consumers be protected by assuring 

that meat products distributed to them are wholesome; not adulterated; and properly marked, 

labeled, and packaged. The Acts gives FSIS the authority, as designated by the Secretary of the 

Department of Agriculture, to prescribe rules and regulations describing sanitation requirements 

for inspected establishments. They also provide FSIS program personnel the authority to refuse 

to allow meat and meat food products to be labeled, marked, stamped, or tagged as "inspected 

and passed" and to prevent the entry of products into commerce when the sanitary conditions of 

any establishment are such that products are adulterated and provide definitions for the term 

"adulterated." Furthermore, the Acts provide FSIS the authority to appoint inspectors from time 

to time to examine and inspect products, including the sanitary conditions offacilities. 

The Acts also give FSIS program personnel the right to examine and inspect all carcasses and 

parts of carcasses that are further treated and prepared and the right to access and examine 

establishment records. When the sanitary conditions of a facility are not properly maintained, 

FSIS can refuse inspection and indefinitely withdraw inspection from an establishment provided 

the establishment is afforded the right to an administrative hearing. 

FSIS Form 2630-9 (6/86) EQUAL OPPORTUNITY IN EMPLOYMENT AND SERVICES 
Under the authority of the FMIA and PPIA, FSIS has prescribed rules and regulations required 

for establishments producing meat and poultry products, including the requirements pertaining to 

sanitation and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) (9 CFR Part 416 and Part 

417) and other matters. FSIS has also developed Rules ofPractice regarding enforcement (9 CFR 

Part 500). The Rules of Practice describe the types of enforcement action that FSIS may take and 

include procedures for taking a withholding action and/or suspension, with or without prior 

notification, and for filing a complaint to withdraw a Grant ofFederal Inspection. 

Findings/Basis for Action 

At approximately at 0835 hours on January 30, 2015, the FSIS Consumer Safety Inspector (CSI) 

arrived for inspection duties and observed evidence of rodent infestation while performing an 

Operational Sanitation Inspection task according to the Sanitation Standard Operating 

Procedures (SSOP). After these observations were made, the CSI informed you of the 

observations, retained product and took a regulatory control action stopping production at your 

establishment. Subsequent to the observation and actions taken, an Enforcement, Investigation, 

and Analysis Officer (EIAO), was dispatched to perform a facility review and identified 

insanitary conditions and collected evidence that supports a Notice of Suspension. 

The facility houses two coolers, one utilized to hold raw product and the other cooler utilized to 

hold and chill Ready-to-Eat product after it is processed under federal inspection. Rodent 

infestation (approximately 75-100 droppings total) was observed in various locations throughout 

the facility including but not limited to: 

Processing Area: 

Along the wall next to the smokehouses, 


In front ofthe smokehouse and coolers, 


In the processing room, 


In the spice room 


Inside box of bologna spice, 


In boiler room, 


The entranceway into the facility, 


In the USDA office. 


A regulatory control action was taken on all exposed products in process and storage with retain 

Tag No. B40182285 (14 totes, lugs and stainless steel bowls ofraw pork meat and beef tongues), 

Retain Tag No. B40182277 (3- 30# boxes of fresh sausage). Retain Tag No. B40182284 (1­

truck Kabanasa sausage, 1- truck polish sausage) all totaling 100 lbs. 

In addition, FSIS personnel identified structural issues as identified as follows: 

Holes in the exterior walls of your facility providing a potential entry point for rodents 

leading into your smokehouse area. You were verbally notified of the location of each 

exact location. 

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On top of coolers there is unused equipment, including bags of spice material located on 

top of cooler located in the smokehouse area of the facility. Such conditions can provide 

a rodent harborage or attractant. 

Based on these findings, you failed to prevent insanitary conditions based on rodent activity. 

Rodent droppings and evidence of entry points have been observed in and around your facility. 

The issues identified above clearly demonstrate a failure of your pest control program and the 

observations support that you have failed to prevent the entrance and harborage of rodents and 

failed to prevent the creation ofinsanitary conditions. 

Summary 

The evidence demonstrates you have failed to properly maintain your facilities in accordance 

with Sanitation Performance Standards (SPS), 9 CFR Parts 416.1, 416.2(a), 416.2(b)(1), 

416.2(b)(3) and 416.4(d), and failed to prevent product contamination in accordance with 9 CFR 

310.18 and 416.4(d). The wholesomeness of your product is directly dependent on the design 

and implementation of a pest management system, including the sanitary procedures conducted 

in your food production. Insanitary conditions create an environment conducive to the 

contamination and adulteration ofproducts. 

Based on the evidence of rodents entering your facility and findings of rodent infestation, FSIS 

concludes that you are not maintaining sanitary conditions within your facility. Thus, it cannot be 

ascertained that meat and poultry products produced at your establishment are not adulterated, as 

they have been prepared, packed or held under insanitary conditions, whereby they may have 

become contaminated with filth, or whereby they may have been rendered injurious to health as 

defined in the FMIA 21 U.S.C. 601 Section l (m)(4). 

Rodents contaminate the environment with urine and excrement. They carry fleas and worms 

and spread diseases including Yersinia pestis (bubonic plague), spirochetal jaundice, 

Leptospirosis, rabies, Streptobacillus moniliformis (rat-bite fever), Hantavirus, Salmonella, and 

Francisella tularensis (tulerimia). Since employees access the affected areas of your 

establishment, it is reasonable to conclude that footwear can become mechanical vectors for 

potential cross contamination of diseases introduced into the processing area where product is 

handled and exposed to the environment. In addition, employees that handle contaminated 

packaging materials and exposed products with their hands may also provide avenues for crosscontamination ofproducts. 

In the interest of protecting public health in accordance with 9 CFR Part 500.3(a)(4), PSIS is 

notifYing you of the decision to withhold the marks of inspection and suspend the assignment of 

inspectors at your establishment. The suspension will remain in effect until you provide adequate 

written corrective and preventive measures to assure FSIS that you can demonstrate a program 

that meets the requirements of the SPS regulations outlined in 9 CFR 416. This includes 

measures in preventing the entrance, harborage, and breeding of rodents and pests in and around 

your facility, restoration of sanitary conditions, disposition of product determined contaminated 

and all applicable regulations required as a federal operator of an establishment that 

manufactures meat and poultry products. 

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In order to resume inspection operations, you must submit corrective actions to the Philadelphia 

District Office. In addition, your written response should include your proposed disposition of 

any affected products already produced and stored in your establishment, including any 

ingredients or packaging materials, to ensure they are not adulterated as a result of this rodent 

ISSUe. 

You are reminded that as an operator of a federally inspected plant you are expected to comply 

with FSIS regulations and to take appropriate corrective actions to prevent the production of 

adulterated products at your establishment. Please be advised you have the right to appeal this 

matter. Ifyou wish to appeal you should contact: 

Executive Associate for Regulatory Operations 


Office ofField Operations 


Food Safety and Inspection Service 


United States Department ofAgriculture 


1400 Independence Ave. S.W. 


Room 3157, South Building 


Washington, DC 20250-3700 


Telephone (202) 720-3697 


Fax: (202) 690-3287 


You may also request a hearing regarding this decision as per 9 CFR 500.5( d) by contacting: 

Director 

Enforcement and Litigation Division (ELD) 

Office oflnvestigation, Enforcement and Audit (OlEA) 

Food Safety and Inspection Service 

United States Department ofAgriculture 

Stop Code 3753, PP3, Cubicle 8-235A 

1400 Independence A venue, S W 

Washington, DC 20250 

Telephone: (202) 418-8872 

Facsimile: (202) 245-5097 

We urge your cooperation and voluntar

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have 

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any questions regarding this 

matter feel free to contact Mr. - at (585) 330- or by email at 

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carcta 

District Manager 

Philadelphia District Office 

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cc: 

FSIS- FO/Quarterly Enforcement Report 

Dr. Jerry Elliott, Director, CID, FSIS, OlEA Washington, DC 

Mr. James Borda, RD, FSIS, OlEA Philadelphia, PA 

Ms. Susan Scarcia, DM, FSIS, OFO, Philadelphia District Office. 

Mr. Michael Osifat, DDM, FSIS, OFO, Philadelphia District Office. 

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Dr. . FSIS, OFO, Philadelphia District Office 

OFO, Philadelphia District Office 

SIS, OFO, Philadelphia District Office 

New York District 

IS, OFO, Philadelphia District Office 

OFO, Philadelphia District Office 

IS, OFO, Philadelphia District 

OFO, Philadelphia District 

FSIS, OFO, Philadelphia District 

, Establishment M18870/P-18870 

Official Files Establishment Folder - Est. Ml8870/P-18870 

FSIS:FO 

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1/30/15 

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