Federal Meat and Poultry Inspection in Michigan

The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has jurisdiction over meat and poultry products as they are defined by the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Acts and FSIS policy. FSIS operates two basic programs:

• Establishments that are granted USDA inspection including animal (before and after slaughter) and facility sanitation inspections.
• Exempt meat and poultry establishments where animal inspections (before or after slaughter) are not performed. Sanitation inspections may be conducted on a periodic basis. Exemptions include:
  • Retail
    • See FSIS Retail Meat Exemptions (PDF)
  • Small Volume Poultry Processing
    • See Specific FSIS Guidance for Determining Exemption for Poultry Operations (PDF)
  • Custom
    • Exempt if:
      • The owner of the livestock slaughters it for their own use, or for use by members of their household or nonpaying guests; OR
      • The animal is slaughtered or processed by someone other than the owner for the personal use of the owner of the animal.

USDA FSIS Links

• Ask FSIS
  • Find answers to questions on inspection-related policies, programs, systems, and procedures. Search the knowledge base, submit a new question, or sign up to be notified when answers are updated;
  • Use the "Search" box to find resources related to key words such as: lethality, cooling, validation, shelf stable, etc.;
  • Submit questions to FSIS and receive a written response.
• Small and Very Small Plant Meat Processing Plants
  • Designed to help these FSIS inspected firms maintain compliance with FSIS policies. Review compliance, labeling, and new technology guides and resources.
• Appendix A - Compliance Guidelines for Meeting Lethality Performance Standards for Certain Meat and Poultry Products (PDF)
• Appendix B - Compliance Guidelines for Cooling Heat-Treated Meat and Poultry Products (Stabilization) (PDF)