WARNING LETTER
STB Quarters, LLC
MARCS-CMS 614419 —
June 08, 2021
Delivery Method:
Via Express Delivery
Product:
Food & Beverages
Recipient:
Recipient Name
Tolga Gerdek
Recipient Title
President
STB Quarters, LLC
4000 W. Montrose Ave.
Chicago
,
IL
60641
United States
Issuing Office:
Division of Northern Border Imports
United States
June 8, 2021
WARNING LETTER
Re: CMS # 614419
Dear Mr. Gerdek:
From February 1 to March 10, 2021, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conducted a remote Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) inspection of FSVP records that you submitted to FDA electronically for STB Quarters, LLC located at 4000 W. Montrose Ave., Chicago, IL. This inspection was conducted to determine compliance with the requirements of section 805 of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) (21 U.S.C. 384a) and the implementing FSVP regulation in 21 CFR part 1 subpart L.
The FSVP regulation requires that importers perform certain risk-based activities to verify that human and/or animal food they import into the United States has been produced in a manner that meets applicable U.S. food safety standards. You may find information relating to the FSVP regulation and your responsibilities to comply with the regulation through links in FDA’s FSVP web page at
https://www.fda.gov/food/food-safety-modernization-act-fsma/fsma-final-rule-foreign-supplier-verification-programs-fsvp-importers-food-humans-and-animals
.
During the inspection, we found that you are not in compliance with the requirements of 21 CFR part 1 subpart L for any of the foods you import from your foreign suppliers, including your tahini/sesame paste imported from your foreign supplier,
(b)(4)
, located in
(b)(4)
, and sesame seeds imported from your foreign supplier,
(b)(4)
, located in
(b)(4)
. You did not have FSVPs for these products. Because of these significant violations, you are not in compliance with section 805 of the FD&C Act.
At the conclusion of the FSVP inspection, our investigator provided you with Form FDA 483a, FSVP Observations. We have not received your response to the Form FDA 483a.
Your significant violations of the FSVP regulation are as follows:
You did not develop, maintain, and follow an FSVP as required by section 805 of the FD&C Act and 21 CFR 1.502(a). Specifically, your firm did not develop an FSVP for any of the foods you import, including the following foods:
• Tahini/Sesame Paste manufactured by
(b)(4)
; and
• Sesame Seeds manufactured by
(b)(4)
On February 25, 2021, you emailed our investigator a variety of documents for your tahini/sesame paste and sesame seed products, including certificates of analysis, ISO certificates, a Kosher certificate, and a HACCP certificate. However, the documents that are relevant to an FSVP are incomplete, and you did not provide a record of your review of the relevant documents or explain how they would apply to your FSVP program. Thus, these documents do not constitute an FSVP as required by section 805 of the FD&C Act and 21 CFR 1.502(a).
The above violations are not intended to be an all-inclusive list of violations of the FSVP requirements. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are in compliance with section 805 of the FD&C Act and the implementing regulation in 21 CFR part 1 subpart L.
This letter notifies you of our concerns and provides you an opportunity to address them. Failure to adequately address this matter may result in further action. For instance, we may take action under section 801(a)(3) of the FD&C Act (21 U.S.C. 381(a)(3)) to refuse admission of food products you import. We may place the foods you import from the identified foreign supplier on detention without physical examination (DWPE) when you import the products. You can find DWPE information relating to FSVP in Import Alert # 99-41, at https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/ialist.html. In addition, the importation or offering for importation into the United States of an article of food without the importer having an FSVP that meets the requirements of section 805 of the FD&C Act or the FSVP regulation is prohibited under section 301(zz) of the FD&C Act (21 U.S.C. 331(zz)).
You should respond in writing within fifteen (15) working days from your receipt of this letter. Your response should address the specific things you are doing to correct any violations. You should include in your response documentation and information that would assist us in evaluating your corrections, (e.g., documentation of changes you made, such as a copy of your FSVP, records to demonstrate implementation of your FSVP), and any additional information that you wish to supply relevant to your compliance with the FSVP regulation. If you believe that you are not in violation of the FD&C Act, include your reasoning and any supporting information for our consideration. If you cannot complete all corrections within 15 days, you should explain the reason for your delay and state when you will correct any remaining violations.
Additionally, we offer the following comments:
We note that you may meet the definition of a “very small importer” under 21 CFR 1.500. If you meet the definition, you are still required to follow FSVP requirements. If you are a very small importer and you choose to comply with the modified requirements in 21 CFR 1.512, you must document that you meet the definition of very small importer as required per 21 CFR 1.512(b)(1)(i). If this section applies and you chose to comply with the requirements in paragraph (b) of this section, you also are required to comply with the requirements in sections 1.502, 1.503, and 1.509, but you are not required to comply with the requirements in sections 1.504 through 1.508 or 1.510. In addition, for each food you import, you must obtain written assurance, before importing the food and at least every two years thereafter, that your foreign supplier is producing the food in compliance with processes and procedures that provide at least the same level of public health protection as those required under section 418 and 419 of the FD&C Act, if either is applicable, and the implementing regulations, and is producing the food in compliance with sections 402 and 403(w) (if applicable) of the FD&C Act (21 CFR 1.512(b)(3)(i)).
We further note that the tahini/sesame seed paste products manufactured by
(b)(4)
, are currently subject to Import Alert 99-19: DWPE Detention without Physical Exam (DWPE) Of Food Products Due To The Presence of Salmonella Import Alert 99-19 and Import Alert 99-43 DWPE Of Ready-To-Eat Human Food Products That Appear To Have Been Prepared, Packed, Or Held Under Insanitary Conditions as a consequence of being found contaminated with Salmonella. You can find DWPE information relating to Import Alerts at
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cms_ia/ialist.html
.
Please email your reply to Food and Drug Administration, Attention: Erica Koory, Compliance Officer, Division of Northern Border Imports, at erica.koory@fda.hhs.gov. Please reference CMS # 614419 on any documents or records you provide to us and/ or within the subject line of any email correspondence you send to us.
Sincerely,
/S/
Keith Jasukaitis
Program Division Director
Division of Northern Border Imports
Content current as of:
06/29/2021
Regulated Product(s)
Food & Beverages