Growers who sell 100% of their product through direct market methods will likely never have to deal with a third party audit, but food safety is a critical component of producing a quality product.  Food safety should be a part of every farms risk management plan.  If you have not attended training on Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) and do not yet have a farm food safety plan in place the process can seem overwhelming.  Look for future articles on food safety here in the PPA and information on GAPs trainings this fall.

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Food Safety Modernization Act – here is some information on new FDA water rules for water used for growing and packing produce and values for pathogens in water and the questions and how FDA answers them including:

• What changes are required for water
• What uses are not exempt anymore
• Which water sources have to be tested
• How often is water testing required

This is a recorded session in MP3 format produced by the Produce Alliance.

The second FDA Proposed Produce Food Safety Rule Q & A conference call, coordinated by the Produce Safety Alliance, was held yesterday.  This conference call focused on agricultural water use in the proposed rule.  To comment on these proposed rules go to Docket Folder Summary: Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption. Comments are due by May 16, 2013

Here are the highlights of yesterday’s conference call: [Read more…]

The first FDA Proposed Produce Food Safety Rule Q & A conference call, coordinated by the Produce Safety Alliance, was held yesterday.  This conference call focused on exemptions to the proposed rule.  Here are the highlights of yesterday’s conference call:

1. How are average annual sales for a farm calculated?
2. Farm Facility (Packinghouse) Registration, are farms exempt?
3. At what point does the FDA Preventative Controls rule apply to a farm?
4. Are there any exemptions to the labeling of product to be sold? [Read more…]

Visit the 2013 Ag Convention & Trade Show for the next Food Safety & Audit Training on February 7th, 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Cost included in the convention fees. Topics covered: Food Safety Modernization Act Proposed Rules, Harmonized Food Safety Standards, How to develop a food safety plan for your operation and risk assessment.

NOFA is sponsoring two food safety trainings: February 11th and February 19th. Both classes will be held at the RCE Mercer County office, 930 Spruce St., Trenton, NJ 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm. $25 for NOFA members/$30 for non-members. Questions? call 908-371-1111 x4 and visit: www.nofanj.org/programs_foodsafety.htm to register for the classes.

Blueberry Food Safety Training on February 20th at the Marucci Center for Blueberry & Cranberry Research and Extension, 125A Lake Oswego Rd., Chatsworth, NJ. 9:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.; $25 includes lunch. To register call 609-726-1590

Obtain up-to-date information at the Food Safety & Harmonized Audit Training on March 1st at the RCE Cumberland County office, 291 Morton Avenue, Rosenhayn. $25 includes lunch and materials; 9:00 am – 4:00 pm. To register call 856-451-2800 x1

The demands placed on farm operators, in terms of food safety documentation, are overwhelming. Growers are dealing with changing and conflicting guidelines from their wholesale customers as well as government entities. No matter that the dust has yet to settle on what practices make sense and what documentation requirements are reasonable for farm operators to perform, the bottom line is this: your operation needs to have a farm food safety plan in writing.

To ease the burden, we’ve gathered information on what needs to be in your farm food safety plan based on current guidelines. We will continue to update this information as it becomes available. [Read more…]