WASHINGTON—Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA had completed tough new food safety standards for ground beef purchased by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) for Federal food and nutrition assistance programs, including school lunches.
"The health of our school children is a top priority at USDA, and today we are moving ahead quickly with plans announced earlier this year to ensure that food provided to nutrition programs is as safe and nutritious as possible," Vilsack said. "The new standards announced today ensure our purchases are in line with major private-sector buyers of ground beef and are part of our continued effort to employ the best scientific knowledge to increase the safety of our nutritional programs."
The new requirements will be applicable to AMS ground beef contracts awarded on or after July 1, 2010.
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