National Branded Products - Raw Ground Beef | Raw Ground Bison | Raw Ground Lamb
Suppliers providing raw ground beef and/or raw ground bison products are required to obtain and maintain GFSI-recognized certification at all grind sites. Failure to maintain annual certification may result in loss of business and deactivation of your vendor number. GFSI-recognized certification is required for all grind sites that manufacture or process raw ground beef and/or raw ground bison products that will be sold at Walmart and/or Sam’s Club, regardless of ownership. It is the responsibility of the supplier to ensure all grind sites manufacturing or processing raw ground beef and/or raw ground bison products maintain compliance with our audit requirements – Walmart does not schedule audits for suppliers or sites. Suppliers will be required to disclose their supply chain to ensure compliance with these requirements. Any changes to supply chain sites shall be communicated to your Food Safety manager. New sites must have approval prior to use.
For more information about the GFSI-recognized certification process and to view a full list of recognized schemes, we recommend visiting the official GFSI website.
Bacteria are everywhere in our environment; virtually any food can harbor bacteria. In foods of animal origin, pathogenic (illness-causing) bacteria, such as Salmonella, Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STECs), Campylobacter jejuni, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus, cause illness. These pathogenic bacteria cannot be seen or smelled. If the pathogens are present when meat is ground, then more of the meat surface is exposed to harmful bacteria. Also, grinding allows any bacteria present on the surface to be mixed throughout the meat.
In addition to achieving annual certification against a Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)-recognized standard, the following requirements are applicable to private branded AND national-brand suppliers who provide fresh or frozen products containing raw (fresh or frozen) ground beef, raw (fresh or frozen) ground bison, and raw (fresh or frozen) ground lamb intended to be cooked prior to consumption by customers/members.
NOTE: these requirements are applicable to product sold raw to our customers/members as well as product that is supplied raw to our stores and clubs which will be cooked prior to being provided to our customers/ members.
Supply Chain Disclosure
All sites producing raw ground beef, bison or lamb final product must be disclosed to the Food Safety department. Depending on the supplier's sourcing and process, additional facilities within the supply chain may need to be disclosed.
Grind Only Suppliers
Suppliers who provide product from a facility containing only a grind process which sources all raw materials from facilities that are not owned/operated/controlled by their company must disclose each grind facility that produces product destined for sale at Walmart, Sam's Club, or online. All grind establishments should be disclosed, even if they are not owned/operated/controlled by your company.
Vertically Integrated Suppliers
Suppliers who provide product from a facility which sources any raw material (trim) from facilities which are owned/operated/controlled by their company must disclose each grind facility that produces product destined for sale at Walmart, Sam's Club, or online. In addition, for each grind facility disclosed, suppliers must disclose all company owned/operated/controlled slaughter facilities that provide raw material to each grind facility, even if the slaughter operation is within the same facility as the grind operation. Suppliers are not required to disclose raw material sources used which are not owned/operated/controlled by their company.
Suppliers with Frozen Processes
All facilities providing final product destined for sale at Walmart, Sam's Club, or online must be disclosed. Final product facilities that are unable to comply with the Process Controls Standards section (i.e., frozen process) must disclose their raw material supply chain. The facilities providing the frozen raw material, even if not owned/operated/controlled by your company, must comply with all requirements listed on this page. This may include disclosure of your supply chain's grind and slaughter establishments.
Process Control Standards
Grind Only Suppliers
Establishments which source all raw materials from facilities not owned/operated/controlled by their company are expected to implement a regulatory-approved intervention, or a combination of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 1.5-log reduction of enteric pathogens (i.e., Shiga toxin-producing E. coli [STEC], Salmonella) within their grind facility(s). Intervention processes must be scientifically validated and those validation studies must be submitted to Walmart Food Safety for review and approval.
Vertically Integrated Suppliers
Vertically integrated suppliers who have slaughterhouse control are expected to implement a regulatory-approved intervention, or a combination of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 5-log reduction of enteric pathogens (i.e., Shiga toxin-producing E. coli [STEC], Salmonella) between post-hide removal and final product. These facilities must ensure they have an intervention implemented within their grind process that consistently produces a minimum of 1.5-logs reduction. Intervention processes must be scientifically validated and those validation studies must be submitted to Walmart Food Safety for review and approval.
When slaughter and grind processes are not within the same establishment, the slaughter process must implement an intervention, or series of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 5-log reduction of enteric pathogens and the grind process must implement an intervention, or series of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 1.5-log reduction of enteric pathogens. Intervention processes must be scientifically validated and those validation studies must be submitted to Walmart Food Safety for review and approval.
Suppliers with Frozen Processes
Suppliers with a process which presents issues with complying with the Process Control Standards requirement (such as a frozen process) who do not have slaughterhouse control must source their raw materials from a supply chain which meets our Process Control Standards.
- Non-intact raw material suppliers are expected to implement a regulatory-approved intervention, or a combination of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 1.5-log reduction of enteric pathogens (i.e., Shiga toxin-producing E. coli [STEC], Salmonella) within their grind facility(s). If these facilities have slaughterhouse control, they are expected to also implement a regulatory-approved intervention, or a combination of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 5-log reduction of enteric pathogens between post-hide removal and final product. If the slaughter and grind processes are within the same facility, the total 5-log reduction must include the 1.5-log reduction from an intervention within the grind process. Intervention processes must be scientifically validated, and those validation studies must be submitted to Walmart Food Safety for review and approval.
- Intact raw material suppliers are expected to implement a regulatory-approved intervention, or combination of interventions, that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 5-log reduction of enteric pathogens (i.e. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli [STEC], Salmonella) within their facility. Intervention processes must be scientifically validated, and those validation studies must be submitted to Walmart Food Safety for review and approval.
Additional Resources
Please see the following documents intended to help answer questions or provide guidance to complying with these requirements. Should you still have additional questions, please contact your Food Safety manager.
Suppliers are responsible for ensuring all sites providing product to Walmart retail operations are compliant with any applicable international (including foreign national), federal, state, and local requirements. In addition, all products provided must be compliant with the federal, state, and local requirements for the store or club in which the products will be sold. This may include, but is not limited to, USDA, FDA, and/or state registration of a supplier’s site, and any related product labeling requirements. All products provided to Walmart must be produced in a commercial food manufacturing or packing environment.
Suppliers (both domestic and foreign) are also expected to assist regulatory and health agencies with investigations in a timely manner. Walmart assists various regulatory agencies in outbreak investigations and expect suppliers to provide any traceback documentation that may be requested. Likewise, if public health may be at risk, even if products produced by a supplier have not been directly implicated in an outbreak, it is our expectation that suppliers comply with any recommended product removals.
If for any reason a situation arises where you need to remove product from Walmart Stores, Sam’s Clubs, Distribution Centers, or Fulfillment Centers:
- Contact your Buyer and your Food Safety Manager immediately to communicate that a removal is necessary. For any impending recalls impacting Walmart and/or Sam’s Club, it is important that this contact be made prior to any public notification. Additional information may be requested, which must be provided in a timely manner.
- The Walmart Recall Managers will take the lead in initiating the recall, communicating to all impacted stores, clubs, distribution centers, and fulfillment centers to hold or remove product quickly. They will also send communications to our members and online customers notifying them of a potential issue. Once a recall is terminated and you have approval, you may resume sending safe products to our stores, clubs, distribution centers, and fulfillment centers.
- Recall information, based on manufacturers’ and regulatory agencies’ press releases that involve products sold through Walmart stores, Walmart.com, Sam’s Club, or SamsClub.com can be found here.
Retail Link® is an online hub for the data, documentation, reports, and special applications that suppliers use to manage their business with Walmart. The Product Removal app is located within Retail Link® and is used to remove products from stores, clubs, distribution centers and fulfillment centers. The Walmart Food Safety & Health compliance team uses data to execute product withdrawals and recalls through this portal.