FDA: Federal food safety law carries price tag

Tom Karst
The Packer
01/04/2013

The costs to fruit and vegetable growers for complying with the newly proposed produce safety regulation have been estimated at more than $30,000 annually for large farms and about $13,000 per year for smaller farms.

Those figures come from the Food and Drug Administration’s cost-and-benefit analysis of the produce safety rule regulation, one of two proposed Food Safety Modernization Act components released Jan. 4.

The FDA estimates the new food safety regulations on growing and packing will prevent 1.75 million foodborne illnesses annually.

The proposed rule imposes new standards on growers for worker training and hygiene, agricultural water purity, biological soil amendments, equipment, tools and buildings. Exemptions to the proposed rule were carved out for produce commodities rarely consumed raw, produce used for personal or on-farm consumption, produce that receives a “kill step” to reduce the presence of microorganisms and farms with average annual sales of $25,000 or less.

Other growers with sales less than $500,000 (and who sell mostly to consumers or nearby retailers and restaurants) can qualify for exemption or fewer mandates — as outlined in the Tester Amendment.

The FDA calculates the benefit from reduced foodborne illnesses to be $1.04 billion. The FDA estimates the cost of the legislation to domestic farms at $460 million annually and $171 million a year for foreign farms. Net benefit was calculated to be $406 million annually.

Michael Taylor, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine, said it is hard to predict foodborne illness outbreaks. He said one of the benefits of the regulation is greater consumer confidence in produce safety and less damage to the industry from recalls.

Taylor said FDA plans to collaborate with the produce industry, state agriculture departments and University Extension agents to educate growers on the new requirements and to provide technical assistance and training.

Margaret Hamburg, commissioner of the FDA, said in a Jan. 4 news conference that the produce safety rule will allow small and large farms to organize themselves around one set of standards, rather than multiple standards from multiple buyers.

“Now there is going to be a uniform, agreed-upon approach that I think will both be driven by the best possible science and be agreed up and enforced at various levels, both local, state, industry and by FDA,” she said.

The produce safety rule was one of two rules released on the two-year anniversary of President Obama’s signing of the federal food safety law.

A second rule released Jan. 4 is the regulation designed to prevent foodborne illnesses originating from food facilities.

The proposed rules are available for public comment for the next 120 days, according to a news release from FDA. After the comment period, the FDA could take up to a year to publish final rules, Taylor said.

Industry leaders said they immediately began reviewing the lengthy proposals.

Mike Stuart, president of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, said Jan. 4 he was glad the produce safety rule was finally out.

“The industry has been in limbo for the past year waiting for the rules to come out, so at least now we have begun the process of looking at them and over the next 120 days we will talk to membership and groups and around the country to provide some input on what we see,” he said.

The 547-page produce safety rule is so long that average growers may have difficulty reviewing the proposal, said Chris Schlect, president of the Yakima, Wash.-based Northwest Horticultural Council. He predicted the 4-month comment period may be extended because of the length of the proposed rules.

“The fear I have is not so much for the big operations because they have people on staff trained to deal with these kinds of things,” he said.

While the smallest farms are exempt from regulation by the food safety law, Schlect said mid-sized family operations might be driven out of business by the regulation.

Schlect said he hopes the FDA provides flexibility for low-risk commodities, including apples and pears.

Officials for PMA and United Fresh declined comment until they could review the proposals in-depth.

Produce safety rule

The produce safety rule proposes enforceable safety standards for the production and harvesting of produce. This rule proposes science- and risk-based standards for fruits and vegetables, according to the release.

The produce safety rule proposes that larger farms comply within 26 months after the final rule is published in the Federal Register, according to the FDA release. “Small” and “very small” farms would have more time to comply, according to the release. All farms will have more time to comply with water quality requirements.

Food facilities rule

The 680-page proposed rule on food facilities requires makers of food to be sold in the U.S., (whether domestic or imported), to develop a formal plan for preventing foodborne illness, according to the FDA release.

The proposed rule would establish requirements for a written food safety plan, hazard analysis, food safety measures to prevent contamination, monitoring, corrective actions, verification and associated records.

The agency said it is proposing that many food manufacturers be compliant by a year after the final rules are published; small and very small businesses would be given additional time.

FDA’s implementation of the proposed regulations will require additional funding, Taylor said.

Hamburg said additional rules on imported food and accreditation standards for third-party food safety audits overseas.

Prepping for Your GAPs Audit: Dec 4th

Are you thinking about getting your Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) certification?  This process can be overwhelming and intimidating, but we are here to help.  On Dec. 4th, Cooperative Extension in collaboration with Carolina Farm Stewardship Association will be holding a training on "Food Safety Audit Trainings for Diversified Farmers".

What:  "Food Safety Audit Trainings for Diversified Farmers"

When:  Tuesday, Dec. 4th from 1-5 pm

Where:  Mountain Horticultural Crop Research and Extension Center, 455 Research Dr.  Mills River, NC

How Much:  Free but you must pre-register!

Registration:  Call the Henderson County Cooperative Extension Office at 828-697-4891 or email me at sue_colucci@ncsu.edu

Tentative Agenda:

1:00 pm        Introductions

1:30 pm        USDA GAP & GHP Audit Preparation and Scheduling

2:15 pm        General Section

3:00 pm        15 Minute Break

3:15 pm        Part One – Farm Review

4:00 pm        Part Two – Field Harvest and Field Packing Activities

4:45 pm        Wrap Up & Questions

The RAFI-Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund & NC Specialty Crop 

Block Grant funded the development of this curriculum. 

For more information, contact Dr. Audrey Kreske, Food Safety Extension 

Assoc., at ackreske@ncsu.edu.

Learn more at http://gapsmallfarmsnc.wordpress.com.

 

NCDA&CS Workshop Helps Protect Your Produce Business

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 5, 2012

CONTACT:

Annette Dunlap, food business specialist NCDA&CS Marketing Division 919-707-3117; annette.dunlap@ncagr.gov

NCDA&CS workshop geared toward produce businesses

RALEIGH -- The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will host a workshop Oct. 3 in Raleigh on protecting your produce business. The event, which will be held at the Donald W. Eaddy Agronomic Lab at 4300 Reedy Creek Road, is tailored for anyone who grows, packs or ships fresh produce.

“This workshop is especially timely as there have been a number of produce recalls around the country this summer,” said NCDA&CS food business specialist Annette Dunlap.  “We want to arm produce businesses with the information they need to hopefully avoid food recalls, but also help them be prepared if a recall happens.”

The workshop will feature presentations from retailers, food inspectors, extension specialists and NCDA&CS staff. Topics include the economics of a food recall, a retailer’s perspective, communicating a recall to your customers and the public, everyday produce safety, working with regulators, legal liability and recalls, rebuilding trust with vendors and NCDA&CS resources.

The cost for the workshop is $20, which includes lunch and materials. The registration deadline is Sept. 28. For more information or to register, go to www.ncagr.gov/markets/agribiz/

, or call Annette Dunlap at 919-707-3117.

Acidified Foods Better Process Control School

 What: Acidified Foods Better Process Control School 
Food Processors Institute instructional materials and exams will be used for the Better Process Control School.  Only sections related to certification in Acidified Foods Processing and Packaging for glass or rigid plastic containers will be covered.

When:  October 3-5, 2012

Where: Holiday Inn Asheville
Biltmore West
435 Smokey Park Hwy
Asheville, North Carolina

Who should attend:  
This school is intended for and directed at the level of operating supervisors of acidified foods processing and packaging systems in acidified food establishments.  The course includes instruction on acidified foods. It will qualify commercial operators of plants producing acidified foods (fresh packed pickles, acidified peppers, pickled eggs, salsa, etc.) to meet the requirements of the umbrella GMP and the specific GMP for acidified foods (21 CFR Part 114).
For more details see the flyer.

Registration:
Registration fee is $450.00 per person. The registration includes: workshop attendance, three lunches,
refreshment breaks, and all manuals. Lodging is not included in the registration fee.

Sponsored by:
Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences North Carolina State University
in cooperation with Food and Drug Protection Division, North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

For more details, please download the flyer for this event.

The Case of the Contaminated, Reusable Grocery Bag

by Mary Rothschild
Food Safety News
May 10, 2012
Original link: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/05/the-case-of-the-contaminated-reusable-grocery-bag/

How Oregon epidemiologists solved a norovirus mystery

Oregon state senior epidemiologist William Keene is a fan of Berton Roueché, whose books, like Eleven Blue Men, revealed the whodunnit work of epidemiology.

Now Keene, of the Oregon Public Health Division, and fellow sleuth Kimberly Repp, of Oregon Health and Sciences University, have cracked a case and told a real-life detective tale worthy of Roueché.

Writing in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, available here online, Keene and Repp explain how in October, 2010, a group of Oregon soccer players, 13 and 14 years old, and some adult chaperones, came down with norovirus during a tournament in Washington state.

One of the girls apparently was infected prior to the trip, and began vomiting and suffering bouts of diarrhea late Saturday in the chaperone's hotel bathroom. The girl, who had no contact with her teammates after she became ill, was driven home in the morning.

But a reusable grocery bag filled with snacks -- packaged cookies, chips and grapes -- had been in the bathroom. The rest of the group ate that food during a Sunday lunch, and other members of the team were ill by Tuesday after they had returned to Oregon.

In investigating the outbreak, Keene and Repp found no connections to any other norovirus illnesses at the team's hotel, the tournament, or the restaurants where they had eaten. It wasn't until they learned about the bag in the bathroom that a "coherent story" emerged, Keene and Repp wrote.

Two weeks later, matching viruses were found on the sides of the bag.

Although the first sick girl said she did not touch the grocery bag, Keene and Repp theorize that the viruses had aerosolized in the bathroom and settled on the sack and the food items inside.

"What this report does is it helps raise awareness of the complex and indirect way that norovirus can spread," said Aron Hall, DVM, MSPH, with the Division of Viral Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in an accompanying editorial. And in what could be a blurb for a Roueché-style book, Hall adds that the study authors provide "a fascinating example of how a unique exposure and transmission scenario can result in a norovirus outbreak."

The investigation shows how this tenacious virus "finds a way to move from host to host, even when those hosts have no direct contact with one another," Hall added.

Keene and Repp observe that "incidentally, this also illustrates one of the less obvious hazards of reusable grocery bags."

While they recommend not storing food in bathrooms, the study authors say "it is more important to emphasize that areas where aerosol exposures may have occurred should be thoroughly disinfected; this includes not only exposed surfaces, but also objects in the environment" that could become
contaminated and spread infection.

In addition to thorough hand-washing, disinfecting affected areas with bleach- based solutions and dedicating bathrooms for use only by those who are sick are some practices that could limited outbreaks caused by such indirect contact, they suggest.

Noroviruses -- "perhaps the perfect human pathogens,"  according to Hall -- are the leading cause of gastroenteritis in the U.S. They are responsible for more than 21 illnesses, 70,000 hospitalizations and 800 deaths annually in this country alone. People can get norovirus illness throughout the year, but cases generally peak between December and February.

GAP compliance critical for trust in local produce, study says

Tom Karst

The Packer
03/21/2012

Growers marketing local food should be prepared to implement good agricultural practices if they want to assure long-term consumer and retail demand, according to researchers at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

“What we found was the trend seems to be that Pennsylvania supermarkets are both interested in increasing sales of local produce but also are going to increasingly hand down more stringent expectations that will require growers to verify their compliance with on-farm food safety standards,” said Daniel Tobin, author of the study and graduate student at Penn State.

The study involved 15 Pennsylvania companies with a total of 628 supermarkets in the state.

The research asked a representative from each of the participating supermarkets to indicate their current (2009) and projected (2012) policies on GAPs. The survey found that in 2009, only four (27%) companies required either GAP training or certification. The research found that by 2012, however, 10 of the 15 (67%) supermarkets said they intend to require either GAP training or third party certification for suppliers.

The majority of supermarkets taking part in the research said they intended to increase purchases of local produce in 2012.

Seven of the companies (47%) indicated they would buy the same amount of local produce in 2012 as they had in 2009, while eight (53%) indicated that they would purchase more local produce by 2012.

None of the retailers planned to buy less local produce.

All the supermarkets that required either training or certification said they intend to purchase more local produce in 2012.

Only one of the 15 companies said it communicates to consumers that the local produce it sells has been inspected for on-farm food safety.

Tobin said there are no reliable figures on the percent of growers in Pennsylvania who have implemented GAPs or undergone third-party certification. The expectation is that GAPs will become required.

“Whether mandated by the Food Safety Modernization Act or the private sector, GAP compliance through third-party certification will likely become the norm for most growers, regardless of farm size, location, or financial status,” according to the study.

A separate study found that 87.6% of Pennsylvania consumers placed high importance on knowing whether the produce they bought had been inspected by the government for on-farm food safety. In addition, 86.6% strongly agreed they would have fewer concerns about produce contamination if they
produce they bought had been inspected by the government.

In general, the authors said the research showed consumers do not currently feel assured that the produce they are purchasing is safe.

2012 Food Trends for Super Market News

Super Market News has just released a list of trends for 2012. There are a few trends on the list that vegetable and small fruit growers maybe able to take advantage of - especially the recurring "trend" of buying locally. (What do you think? Is buying local still a trend?)

2012 Food Trends to Watch

By Phil Lempert
Dec 6, 2011

2011 brought us higher food prices at unprecedented levels, crops and livestock destroyed by global weather catastrophes, nations at war over the lack of food supplies, and more food recalls from unique points of origin. Americans love their foods – in supermarkets, on television, at restaurants and now even on their mobile phones – we are a nation obsessed with food trucks, molecular gastronomy and struggling to eat as local as we can. All of which has built a foundation for what may be one of the most exciting – and game-changing years in the food world: Welcome to Food 2012.

Trend #1: Food Prices
...The costs of fuel, feed, packaging, food safety coupled with a higher demand for export all will factor into the retail price on the shelf. Many of the savings tactics most shoppers deployed in 2007 as the recession began are still being used each time they shop for groceries – using coupons, frequent shopper cards, shopping lists, shopping at non-traditional foods stores and even trading down their choices to less expensive brands are part of the regular routine...

Trend #2: Never Shop or Eat Alone Again

The rise of food blogs has set a foundation for group food experiences. Food trucks tweet their locations and flash food raves assemble underground at midnight. And it is not about the food. It is about connection, conversation and a sense of community. It is estimated that 30% of today’s U.S. workforce is made up of independents – as a result they have a greater desire to be in a shared food experience — “let’s meet and eat” if you will...

Trend #3: The Baby Boomers Keep Right on Truckin’

The generation of 76 million who started turning 65 years old last year will control 52% of the total $706 billion spend on groceries by 2015 – making them the largest food influencers and purchasers...

Trend #4: Increased Emphasis on the ‘Farm to Fork’ Journey

Shoppers have become increasingly interested in knowing where their food comes from, which is why 2012 will bring an added emphasis to a different kind of food celebrity — the farmer. Last year we saw sales flourish among grocery retailers who jumped on the movement among consumers to “buy local.” In this age of transparency, interest in the farm-to-fork journey has grown considerably, inspired in part by food-safety scares and more importantly a desire to know how the food we are serving our families is being produced.

This year, we’re seeing more farmers get in on the action. A growing number of farmers are leading the conversation by using blogs and social media sites to bring the story of the American farmer to consumers. According to the American Farm Bureau’s 2010 Young Farmers and Ranchers Survey, nearly 99% of farmers and ranchers aged 18 to 35 have access to and use the Internet and nearly three quarters of those surveyed have a Facebook page. Additionally, 10% use Twitter and 12% post YouTube videos. In fact, 77% of those surveyed view this type of communication as an important part of their jobs as farmers and ranchers. In September of this year, the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) launched an annual $11 million program designed to open the dialogue with consumers. Expect to see more advertising and television programs starring these real food experts (vs. actors pretending to know their food).

Trend #5: The End of the Checkout Lane

...For many shoppers high-tech adds to personalization with suggested purchases and targeted offers based on their histories in the store, which is typically delivered in a functional way. A change is about to happen where high-tech meets high-touch in a warm and friendly way that reinforces the central community nature and feel of the local supermarket. If you are hesitant to believe, just think back to the last time you saw a phone booth.

Trend #6: The Ethnic Food Revolution
Food trucks are replacing gourmet and specialty stores as the channel to experiment and discover new food experiences — especially when it comes to ethnic foods. More often than not, these ethnic food trucks are actually manned by descendants of the actual cuisines and cultures being offered; with the ability and knowledge to share the heritage and romance of the food — a benefit many shoppers have come to enjoy and expect from shopping at Farmers’ Markets for produce. They’ve opened access to these foods they feel passionate about, and they have removed intimidation and expense from the experience of consumer trial, paving the way for food companies and retailers to bring to market authentic ethnic cuisines, recipes and ingredients in a more convenient and affordable way...

Trend #7: The New Role of the Male Shopper

This time it is not about the metrosexual — it is all about “dad” and family. After surveying 1,000 professional fathers from Fortune 500 companies in four different industries, Boston College Center for Work and Family learned that, “Today’s dads associate being a good father just as much with the role of effective caregiver as the traditional role of breadwinner. These men want to be engaged parents and successful professionals, yet find conflicts as they try to achieve both objectives.” Because of the economy, more men are at home. The good news for them is that studies suggest a link between husbands who help out at home and happier relationships...

Read more: http://supermarketnews.com/Grocery_Center_Store_Brands/2012_food_trends_1205/index1.html#ixzz1g31LiJcQ