The National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America in a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the responsibility for safety of imported foods under the Food Safety Modernization Act rests on the shoulders of the people who have knowledge and control over the supply chain, not the brokers.

In the NCBFAA's view, these are the U.S. owner, consignee who purchases the product, or a U.S. person who specifically takes on the role as the agent of the foreign owner for this purpose.

"It will not serve the goals of the act to place this responsibility on third parties (customs brokers) simply because they are at a convenient point in the supply chain, yet are not in a position to know first-hand details about the product or to control who supplies the product," said NCBFAA President Jeffrey Coppersmith.

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