What requirements apply when I import a food that cannot be consumed without the hazards being controlled or for which the hazards are controlled after importation?
21 C.F.R. § 1.507
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01(a) Circumstances. You are not required to conduct an evaluation of a food and foreign supplier under § 1.505 or supplier verification activities under § 1.506 when you identify a hazard requiring a control (identified hazard) in a food and any of the following circumstances apply:
(1) You determine and document that the type of food (e.g., raw agricultural commodities such as cocoa beans and coffee beans) could not be consumed without application of an appropriate control;
(2) You rely on your customer who is subject to the requirements for hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls in subpart C of part 117 or subpart C of part 507 of this chapter to ensure that the identified hazard will be significantly minimized or prevented and you:
(i) Disclose in documents accompanying the food, in accordance with the practice of the trade, that the food is “not processed to control [identified hazard]”; and
(ii) Annually obtain from your customer written assurance, subject to the requirements of paragraph (c) of this section, that the customer has established and is following procedures (identified in the written assurance) that will significantly minimize or prevent the identified hazard;
(3) You rely on your customer who is not subject to the requirements for hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls in subpart C of part 117 or subpart C of part 507 of this chapter to provide assurance it is manufacturing, processing, or preparing the food in accordance with the applicable food safety requirements and you:
(i) Disclose in documents accompanying the food, in accordance with the practice of the trade, that the food is “not processed to control [identified hazard]”; and
(ii) Annually obtain from your customer written assurance that it is manufacturing, processing, or preparing the food in accordance with applicable food safety requirements;
(4) You rely on your customer to provide assurance that the food will be processed to control the identified hazard by an entity in the distribution chain subsequent to the customer and you:
(i) Disclose in documents accompanying the food, in accordance with the practice of the trade, that the food is “not processed to control [identified hazard]”; and
(ii) Annually obtain from your customer written assurance, subject to the requirements of paragraph (c) of this section, that your customer:
(A) Will disclose in documents accompanying the food, in accordance with the practice of the trade, that the food is “not processed to control [identified hazard]”; and
(B) Will only sell the food to another entity that agrees, in writing, it will:
(1) Follow procedures (identified in a written assurance) that will significantly minimize or prevent the identified hazard (if the entity is subject to the requirements for hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls in subpart C of part 117 or subpart C of part 507 of this chapter) or manufacture, process, or prepare the food in accordance with applicable food safety requirements (if the entity is not subject to the requirements for hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls in subpart C of part 117 or subpart C of part 507); or
(2) Obtain a similar written assurance from the entity's customer, subject to the requirements of paragraph (c) of this section, as in paragraphs (a)(4)(ii)(A) and (B) of this section, as appropriate; or
(5) You have established, documented, and implemented a system that ensures control, at a subsequent distribution step, of the hazards in the food you distribute and you document your implementation of that system.
(b) Written assurances. Any written assurances required under this section must contain the following:
(1) Effective date;
(2) Printed names and signatures of authorized officials; and
(3) The assurance specified in the applicable paragraph.
(c) Provision of assurances. The customer or other subsequent entity in the distribution chain for a food that provides a written assurance under paragraph (a)(2), (3), or (4) of this section must act consistently with the assurance and document its actions taken to satisfy the written assurance.
Source: eCFRURL: https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2024-07-01/title-21.xmlFetched: 7/26/2026