National Grain and Feed Association
& Grain Elevator and Processing Society
Facility Security Site

This section – in a question-and-answer format – identifies some of the major regulatory requirements that apply or may apply based upon the type of facility or business you operate. Importantly, this is NOT intended to be an all-encompassing listing. See the other sections of this web site to determine which regulations may apply to your specific operation.

1. Is your facility a grain-handling facility (country elevator, terminal elevator, export elevator, etc.), grain or oilseed processor (corn, soybean, flour mill, etc.), commercial feed or pet food manufacturer, or feed ingredient manufacturer?
   
   • Your facility is required to be registered with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Click here to access that section.
     
   • Your facility is required to maintain records and make such records available to FDA, under certain circumstances, within 24 hours. Click here to access that section.
     
     
2. Does your facility have a Uniform Grain and Rice Storage Agreement (UGRSA) contract with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation (USDA/CCC)?
   
   • See the requirements listed in response to #1.
     
   • Plus, you’re required to conduct a facility vulnerability assessment and implement a facility security plan under the UGRSA contract. Click here to access that section.
     
     
3. Is your facility an export grain elevator located at a U.S. port?
   
   • See the requirements listed in response to #1.
     
   • Plus, your facility is required to implement a U.S. Coast Guard-approved security plan or participate in the NAEGA alternative security plan. Click here to access that section.
     
     
4. Do you operate a barge-loading/unloading grain facility located on or adjacent to a U.S. inland waterway (e.g., Mississippi, Illinois, Ohio, Columbia, Snake Rivers, etc.)?
   
   • See the requirements listed in response to #1.
     
   • Plus, you may be required to implement area maritime security requirements developed by local captains-of-the-port. Click here to access that section.
     
     
5. Does your facility operate on an inland waterway and handles ammonium nitrate, ammonium nitrate fertilizer or fertilizer mixtures or nitro-carbo-nitrate, or loads or unload barges with vegetable oils or animal fats?
   
   • See the requirements listed in response to #1.
     
   • Plus, your facility is required to have a U.S. Coast Guard-approved facility security plan. Click here to access that section.
     
     
6. Does your facility import food, grains, oilseeds, feed ingredients, feed or other agricultural commodities for consumption in the United States?
   
   • See the requirements listed in response to #1.
     
   • Plus, you are required to provide prior notice to FDA before these products are allowed entry. Click here to access that section.
     
     
7. Do you operate an integrated livestock or poultry operation?
   
   • You are classified as a “farm” and exempt from FDA’s facility registration requirements listed in response to #1, provided the commodities and feed are consumed on the premises under the same ownership, and are not sold to another entity.
     
   • You are classified as a “farm” and exempt from FDA’s recordkeeping requirements listed in response to #1, provided the activities of such establishments are limited to “growing or raising” farm animals for human food, but do not extend into further processing of food-producing animals into meat, milk or eggs.
     
     
8. Is your facility a retail feed store or pet supply store that sells products only to final consumers?
   
   • If you qualify as a retail dealer (see definition alongside), you are considered a retail dealer and exempt from the FDA requirements listed in response to #1. [Note: Retail dealers are defined as businesses where total annual dollar sales to consumers exceed the total amount of dollar sales to businesses (such as farms and kennels, etc.). This exemption applies even if your facility stores, manufactures or packs such products.
     
     
9. Do you operate a farm supply business that transports ammonium nitrate fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia, pesticides, herbicides, propane, diesel fuel, gasoline or other similar products to farms or other businesses?
   
   • In addition to other requirements, you are required by the U.S. Department of Transportation to develop and implement a written security plans and ensure employees who handle such substances are trained to recognize and react to potential security breeches. Click here to access that section.
     
     
10. Is your company a railroad, barge line or trucking firm that hauls food, agricultural commodities, feed or feed ingredients for use in the United States?
    
    • You generally are exempt from the FDA facility registration requirements listed in response to #1, unless you are a trucker-dealer of grain or your conveyances are used to provide short-term storage for grain. Click here to access that section.
      
    • You may be required to provide prior notice to FDA (see response to #1) if your conveyances are transporting food, agricultural commodities, feed or feed ingredients for consumption in the United States. Click here to access that section.
      
    • You are required to maintain records and make such records available to FDA, under certain circumstances, within 24 hours. Click here to access that section.
      

 

 

Disclaimer: The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) and The Grain Elevator and Processing Society (GEAPS) make no warranties, expressed or implied, concerning the accuracy, application or use of the information contained on this web site. Further, nothing contained on this web site is intended as legal advice. Competent legal and technical counsel should be consulted.