Oct 17, 2018

Assisting produce growers in complying with food safety laws

The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule is the first law to regulate the growing and harvesting of fresh produce. The law is aimed at identifying on-farm risks and being proactive in preventing outbreaks. Prior to 2017, the only resource available to growers to help them understand FSMA compliance was a required classroom-style training, Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) grower training. Now, growers have the option to enroll in the On-Farm Readiness Review (OFRR), a voluntary, confidential verification program by trained individuals to ensure compliance.

Michigan State University Extension, alongside the Food and Drug Administration, various state departments of agriculture and universities nationally developed the OFRR process and training to provide U.S. growers additional assistance with FSMA compliance.

• To date, Michigan has trained 1,075 growers in 33 presentations of the PSA Training.
• Since January 2018, 16 reviewer trainings reaching 296 individuals in 44 states have been completed.
• In its first three months, trained reviewers completed 70 OFRRs in 11 states.