Truckers urge better border regs harmonization....

July 28, 2004

28 July 2004

Truckers urge better border regs harmonization in brief to FDA

The following article is excerpted from the 27 July 2004 edition of “Canadian Transportation & Logistics”.

The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) wants the US Food and Drug Administration to further harmonize its requirements for cross border shipments with those of US Customs and Border Protection.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently in the process of implementing a number of new regulations under the US Bioterrorism Act. Full enforcement of provisions on prior notice of food shipments is slated to begin August 13th.

While acknowledging that progress has been made by the two agencies in bridging the gap between their requirements for the shipment of food products into the United States, CTA said that more must be done to eliminate inconsistencies that cause confusion for shippers and carriers, ….

In its comments submitted to the FDA, the trucking industry lobby group urged the FDA to allow food products to be transported into the United States under the same requirements as other products moving under the Free and Secure Trade Program (FAST). Under this program, pre-screened importers, carriers and drivers are granted shorter prior notice time frames and fewer information requirements than non-FAST carriers….

A move by FDA to allow food to move through the FAST "stream" in the same manner as other products would demonstrate the commitment to harmonization that industry has long encouraged," said Ron Lennox, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, CTA.

CTA also urged FDA to:
- Harmonize all prior notice time frames with those of CBP
- Eliminate FDA requirements for prior notice on domestic Canadian shipments moving in-transit through the United States
- Increase hours of operation at the border
- Promote paperless electronic processing


Topic(s): 
Canadian Economy & Politics
Information Source: 
Canadian News Channel
Document Type: 
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