Yes, we CAN utilize Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs)! Hear from inspired producer, baker, and entrepreneur Shamilla Roberts and Carolina Farm Stewardship Association's Food Systems Specialist Keisha Rainey on how CFSA's cGMP online module program has helped Shamilla grow her food business. We discuss how the module is a great foundation for building thriving, food-safe businesses, preserving peak harvests, and how more accessible community preserved foods can help us realize a better food future. Carolina Farm Stewardship Association CFSA Events & Trainings Green Raven Organics ..read more

Hear all about the buzz from apiary operations at two different ends of the country: urban bee keepers Timothy Paule and Nicole Lindsey of Detroit Hives in Michigan, and from Tara Chapman of Two Hives Honey in Austin, Texas. They share how pollinators fit into and enhance the fabric of an urban landscape, how they navigate consumer expectations on honey, and how food safety and security are tied to our small but mighty pollinators. Bees Please! Detroit Hives Two Hives Honey ..read more

Kicking off Season 2 of the Food Safety Dish is a compelling conversation on produce recalls, crisis management strategies, and how to navigate a recall should it strike. We got the dish from experts Gretchen Wall, former Director of Food Safety & Quality at the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA), PR communications expert Amy Philpott, and Margaret Dominguez, VP of Food Safety & Compliance at Soli Organics. All have experience navigating recalls and helping farms get back on track after the dreaded event, sharing their best advice so you can avoid this outcome. Plus, Gretch ..read more

Longtime food safety expert and consultant Dr. Jennifer McEntire joins us to talk recordkeeping, the FDA Traceability rule, and how to best incorporate a good traceability system on your farm. Resources: FDA Traceability Rule Food Traceability List Produce Traceability Initiative GS1 US FSMA 204 Readiness Checklist GS1 Guide to How Standards Fit Into the Rule Jennifer's Consultancy: Food Safety Strategy | FSMA ..read more

The food safety team sat down with Donna Clements, Produce Safety Alliance Coordinator and Northeast Regional Extension Associate. We discuss what sanitizers are, how to choose and use them wisely, and about plenty of tools and resources to guide you in your practice. Resources Produce Safety Alliance: https://cals.cornell.edu/produce-safety-alliance Introduction to Selecting an EPA-Labeled Sanitizer: https://resources.producesafetyalliance.cornell.edu/documents/Sanitizer-Factsheet.pdf UVM Sanitizer Dose Calculator: https://ageng.w3.uvm.edu/sanitizer/index.html UVM Safely Dispensing Sanitizer ..read more

Anita Adalja, founder of Not Our Farm, sat down with the food safety team to discuss how community care and considerations for farmworkers--the heart of farm operations--lead to healthy work environments, healthy food, happy people, and beyond! Resources Not Our Farm Website Not Our Farm Zine: A Guide to Working on Farms Fair Share CSA Coalition Help us continually improve! Respond to the Food Safety Dish Survey ..read more

Have you pondered ponics systems? Sean Fogarty is a Research Specialist at the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety focused on-farm produce safety in the Northeast, and hydroponic and aquaponic food safety nationwide. We talked all about aquaponics & hydroponics, risks to consider, and how interested growers can venture into ponics operations of their own. Some post-show notes from Sean: When recirculating a nutrient solution, water treatment of some form will be required to maintain optimal water quality (chemically, physically, and biologically). At the most basic this includes phys ..read more

Compost... one of the great wonders of the world! We got the dish from Seattleites Nathan Stacey, Farm Programs Director at Tilth Alliance and Liv Johansson, Compost Facility Operator at the Woodland Park Zoo & Vice President of the Washington Organics Recycling Council (WORC.) We talked soil science, the basics of compost, the coveted "Zoo Doo" compost program at Woodland Park Zoo, and how compost's myriad of uses bring bounty and stability to not only farms, but also help the earth as we know it spin round! Resources: Washington State University Compost Mix Calculator Tilth Alliance Reso ..read more

University of Vermont Extension Associate Professor of Agricultural Engineering and Director of the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety (NECAFS) Chris Callahan clarifies common questions and misconceptions around cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting, and shares some simple methods to incorporate hygienic design practices into your operation to streamline your food safety management. LINKS: UVM Ag Engineering Site. http://go.uvm.edu/ageng SCRUB Project Page. http://go.uvm.edu/scrub A Guide to Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Disinfecting. http://go.uvm.edu/clean-sanitize-disinfect Cleaning T ..read more

Fellow local food safety collaborators, Kentucky Horticulture Council's Dakota Moore and Dani D'Antonio, dive in to the world of water testing--various sources, how to test your water, and best practices to ensure your water is continually safe with minimal risk. Kentucky Horticulture Council Resources: Ag Water Sampling & Testing Resources: https://kyhortcouncil.org/ag-water-sampling-testing/ Ag Water Testing How-To Videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVyJ0VH6aG-zE3Nq6HOCC0b-XuMFMFo7Q NECAFS Water Testing: https://go.uvm.edu/waterlabmap ..read more