Oregon farm regulators may cut back federal inspections

SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Oregon farm regulators may reduce the number of inspections they conduct for federal officials so they can catch up on a backlog of state inspections.

The Capital Press reports (http://bit.ly/2m7Qm1H ) that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration pays the Oregon Department of Agriculture $700,000 per year to make sure food manufacturers are following sanitation standards and other regulations.

A state audit found that the program had a backlog of 2,800 facilities that were overdue for an inspection by at least three months.

Stephanie Page, director of food safety and animal health for the ODA, says the agency is considering cutting down its yearly federal inspections from 500 to 400. The change would free up about 700 hours a year and reduce the agency’s federal funding by one-fifth.