Food safety news

Food safety is an issue of great concern to all food producers, but especially to small growers who know their customers. Stay informed about food safety regulation and news by visiting this section often.

These articles have recently been added to Growing for Market Online

Produce buyers beginning to require GAPs certification Dec 3, 2009: Growers report that some supermarkets are now requiring them to have certification of Good Agricultural Practices. Learn more about GAPs and whether you might be affected.

Food Safety training bill introduced Nov 12, 2009: A bill introduced November 10, 2009, in the U.S. Senate would establish a food safety training program for small farmers and processors.

Produce implicated unfairly in CSPI study Oct 12, 2009: Fresh produce is being blamed for foodborne illness in a report this month from the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The CSPI report, The Ten Riskiest Foods Regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, says leafy greens have caused the greatest number of food contamination outbreaks — 363 — among the 1,500 outbreaks analyzed from 1990 to 2006. Potatoes are #5 on the Top 10 list, tomatoes are #8 and berries are #10.
The organization used data from the Centers for Disease Control and other sources to create its Top Ten list. CSPI is using the report to urge the Senate to pass food safety legislation already passed by the House, which would give the FDA more power to regulate farms and processors.
These are the basic facts that are circulating about the report, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find that they do not implicate farmers in most of the outbreaks. As a food producer, you need to know all the facts about this report so you can reassure your customers who may be worried by the headlines. So let’s look at what the report says about fresh produce when you get down to the details.

Food safety rules must accommodate small farms Sep 1, 2009: Writing in YES! magazine, GFM Editor Lynn Byczynski explains the ways that small farmers will be affected by some food safety regulations being considered.

FDA 'guidances' issued Aug 17, 2009: The Food and Drug Administration has released draft "guidances" for growing and handling tomatoes, leafy greens and melons to prevent microbial contamination. FDA says its guidance documents represent the agency's current thinking on a topic, and are not binding. However, FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., said the guidances "will be followed within two years by enforceable standards for fresh produce."

Food Safety: Let's work on this together! Apr 1, 2009: Good Agricultural Practices (GAPS) - that sounds innocent enough. The danger lurks in who defines them and whether the rules and regulations fit farms of various sizes and processing on differing scales.

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