US Good Importer Practices guidelines

The US Departments of Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Commerce, Homeland Security, Transportation, as well as the Consumer Product  Safety Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency and the US  Trade Representative have issued draft guidance on Good Importer  Practices, to ensure that imported products are in compliance with the  relevant US laws and regulations.

Jeffrey Shuren, Associate Commissioner for policy and planning at the  Food and Drug Administration, said: "this draft guidance provides  importers with recommendations to assist them in preventing or  detecting potential problems at critical points along the product's  life cycle." Over the past couple of years, the FDA has had to cope  with contaminated medicines and food products, including counterfeit  supplies of the blood-thinner heparin, melamine-adulterated dairy  products and pet food and diethylene glycol in cough remedies and  toothpaste (Marketletters passim).

In a statement, the FDA listed the four guiding principles under which  the draft GIPs are organized: establishing a product safety management  program; knowing the product and applicable US requirements;  verification and company compliance with US rules throughout the supply  chain and product cycle; and taking corrective and preventative action  if the imported product fails to meet US standards.