Produce safety outlined under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is a federal requirement that will impact Texas farmers.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) are coordinating efforts with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service to offer materials and classes to help educate, train and prepare growers on how to comply with this rule.
Fruit and vegetable growers are encouraged to attend a food safety training July 27 at the Carden-Waller Extension Building in Prairie View.
The event will teach growers about the Produce Safety Rule; worker health, hygiene and training; soil amendments; wildlife, domesticated animals and land use; agricultural water during production and postharvest; postharvest handling and sanitation; and how to develop a farm food safety plan.
“The course is one way to satisfy the Produce Safety Rule, which requires a minimum of one supervisor or responsible party for a farm to have successfully completed food safety training at lease equivalent to that received under standardized curriculum recognized as adequate by the Food and Drug Administration,” Dr. Joe Masabni, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service horticulturist in Overton and organizer of the training, said.
Dr. Matthew Taylor, associate professor of Food Microbiology in the Texas A&M University Animal Science department at College Station, will also teach a portion of the course.
A $40 fee includes educational materials, a certificate of course completion, breakfast and lunch.
Click here or call 979-845-2604 to register.