Renewal of FDA Food Facility Registration Begins Oct. 1 - Sobel Network Shipping Co., Inc.
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Renewal of FDA Food Facility Registration Begins Oct. 1

Posted on in Blog, English

The 1st of October has come and gone, and that means the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Food Facility Registration Renewal period has begun. Continuing through December 31, 2022, all food facilities in our clients’ supply chain must submit a renewal application or the products will be denied entry into the US.

A Dun & Bradstreet (DUNS) number – a unique nine digit identifying number for businesses – must be added to the cargo as part of the FDA renewal. Just one DUNS number for the corporate headquarters is not enough, one must be provided for the food facility location as well. In the past, the FDA was much more lax with the enforcement of this requirement, but with the renewal period, that will no longer be the case. 

Please note that the name and contact information on the FDA food facility registration must match the DUNS number contact information exactly. If there is a discrepancy, the registration may be canceled. As an example, if there is an entity that identifies as “XYZ Manufacturing” at “1234 Main St.” on the registration, but the DUNS number is registered to “XYZ Manufacturing LLC.” at “1234 Main St.” it will be denied. The two must match in exactly or it will not work. 

Importers must communicate with the food facilities, including the manufacturer or grower, the consolidator, the shipper, and the end consignee to do the following:

  1. Inform them of the renewal requirement and avoid any interruption of importation
  2. Notify them of the need for a DUNS number for the physical location of the food facility and that the corporate headquarters is the incorrect location. 
  3. Warn them of the mismatch issue with contact information. 
  4. Provide links to the FDA renewal instructions and portal and DUNS number websites. 

As a company that runs a tight ship, Sobel urges you to communicate right now with the food facilities in your supply chain to avoid having your products refused access to the US. If you need help with this, or if you have any questions on how this affects you, contact your Sobel representative today.