Food safety regulation and small processing: A case study of interactions between processors and inspectors

As interest in small-scale food processing increases, so does interest in assuring that food safety regulations accommodate rather than hinder small processors. Some practitioners and advocates charge that regulations are unfairly slanted against smaller producers and favor large food manufacturers. Studies of regulatory implementation have suggested that inspection practices offer possible policy accommodations to small food businesses. Yet there has been little research on food safety inspections of small processors. This article describes a study of food safety inspections of small processors in the US state of Michigan. Interactions between inspectors and processors were explored using a qualitative ethnographic approach. Results indicate that these interactions have the potential to achieve accommodative regulatory outcomes. Inspectors took a collaborative, assistive approach which appeared to benefit processor operations as well as improve compliance. These results have implications for policymaking for small processors, and they lay the groundwork for further research on food safety regulatory implementation.