LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service released new guidelines on Wednesday aimed at strengthening documentation in support of environmental or animal-raising labeling claims on meat and poultry products after a recent study found antibiotics in livestock raised for the no-antibiotics market.

Among the guidelines is USDA's call for meat and poultry companies to do more to verify claims that the products are raised antibiotic-free. FSIS last updated its guidelines on such claims in 2019.

FSIS conducted a study along with USDA's Agricultural Research Service aimed at learning more about the veracity of no-antibiotics claims.

"The study found antibiotic residues in approximately 20% of samples tested from the 'raised without antibiotics' market," FSIS said in a news release.

The agency said it collected liver and kidney samples from 196 eligible cattle at 84 slaughterhouses in 34 states. The ARS analyzed the samples targeting more than 180 veterinary drugs including antibiotics.

"The action FSIS is taking through the publishing of this guidance today addresses these concerning findings and makes clear that FSIS will take enforcement action against any establishments found to be making false or misleading negative antibiotic claims," the agency said.

FSIS said it informed the establishments about the positive results from the study and advised them to conduct a "root-cause analysis and implement corrective actions."

The agency said it advised the establishments to determine how antibiotics were introduced into animals and "to take appropriate measures to ensure that future products are not misbranded."

In the updated guidelines, FSIS said it "strongly encourages" the use of third-party certification to substantiate animal-raising or environment-related claims.

Third-party certification of animal-raising or environment-related claims, the agency said, helps ensure that such claims are "truthful and not misleading" by having an independent organization verify that their standards are being met on the farm for the raising of animals and for environmental stewardship.

The revised FSIS guidelines also emphasizes "more robust" documentation for environment-related and animal-raising claims.

Additionally, the guideline recommends companies using "negative" antibiotic claims on labeling implement routine sampling and testing programs to detect antibiotic use in animals prior to slaughter or obtain third-party certification that includes testing.

FSIS said animal-raising claims such as "raised without antibiotics," "grass-fed" and "free-range," and environment-related claims such as "raised using regenerative agriculture practices" and "climate-friendly," are voluntary marketing claims.

The documentation submitted by companies to support such claims is reviewed by FSIS and can only be included on meat and poultry labels after they are approved by the agency.

FSIS said the sampling results may lead to additional testing by the agency.

"FSIS has the authority to collect samples any time it believes a product is mislabeled with any claim covered by the guidance," the agency said.

"Moreover, FSIS may consider future additional actions, including random sampling and rulemaking, to further strengthen the substantiation of animal-raising and environment-related claims."

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

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