Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is of high interest for the produce industry because it can drive produce safety enhancements. In order to assist the fresh produce industry in root cause analysis decision making and implementation, Western Growers, in collaboration with other leading produce industry associations, developed and published two RCA industry guidance documents. The first ...
Yesterday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted a new podcast episode featuring Western Growers Science Programs Director Afreen Malik. The episode, titled “Whole Genome Sequencing in the New Era of Smarter Food Safety,” explores the potential of Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) in transforming food safety. In the podcast episode, Afreen discussed the current ...
Over the past months, Western Growers (WG) has dedicated time and resources to update pre-harvest product testing guidance for leafy greens operations, otherwise known as “Appendix C of the LGMA-approved metrics.” Today, August 12, 2021, WG posted a revised version of Appendix C. Click here to access this document. These guidelines are founded on the ...
Learn more about root cause analysis by joining the “Root Cause Analysis Guidance Documents Overview” taking place on Thursday, August 26, 2021, from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. PT. During the webinar Sonia Salas, Dr. Trevor Suslow, Afreen Malik, and Dr. Jennifer McEntire, will discuss: An Overview of RCA Guidance: “When to do an RCA” ...
The American Frozen Food Institute will hold a free virtual food safety symposium on September 14 to serve as a platform for dialogue on Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) science, alternate approaches to regulatory policies and management of Lm in foods and implementation of more practical and science-based programs. Frank Yiannis, U.S. FDA Deputy Commissioner for Food ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently conducting an assignment to collect and test 240 samples of domestically produced fresh-cut cantaloupe from processors, warehouses and distribution centers. This assignment began in late June and will continue over the next 12 months. The target pathogens are Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. The assignment includes an…
Western Growers urges all leafy greens industry stakeholders to remain vigilant during this current transition period from California’s Central Coast to Yuma, Arizona. To provide support during this critical time, Western Growers and the Arizona and California LGMAs hosted a webinar series covering this topic back in 2020. This year, Western Growers continues collaborating with ...
Tomorrow, Western Growers will host an in-person discussion in Salinas, California, on Appendix C of the LGMA-approved metrics. During the meeting, attendees will receive an in-depth overview of Appendix C and also have the opportunity to raise questions and learn about new resources available to the industry. To attend, RSVP to Scott Nichols at [email protected]. ...
On November 4, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and STOP Foodborne Illness will be holding their first webinar in a new series on food safety culture. Food safety culture is a journey and learning opportunity for both small to large-scale businesses, the regulatory community and consumers. In support of the FDA’s New ...
In its annual Pesticide Residue Monitoring Program Report for FY 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration shared that the levels of pesticide residues in the U.S. food supply are generally in compliance with established standards, as they have over the past eight years. The FDA tested for 812 pesticides and industrial chemicals across 4,692 ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC), in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating illnesses in a multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7. As of Nov. 15, 2021, 10 people have been infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 across seven states. Illnesses started ...
Today, December 2, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a proposed rule to subpart E of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule, adjusting the requirements of agricultural water for fresh produce operations subject to this regulation. According to FDA, these proposed requirements are intended to address stakeholder concerns ...
On Dec. 16, 2021 at noon PT/ 3 p.m. ET, Western Growers in collaboration with Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Association, Northwest Horticultural Council, Produce Marketing Association, and United Fresh Produce Association will be hosting a free webinar featuring the FDA’s Consumer Safety Officer Kruti Ravaliya to provide an overview of the FDA’s long-anticipated proposed changes ...
Today, December 9, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a Foodborne Outbreak Response Improvement Plan, striving to enhance the speed, effectiveness, coordination and communication of outbreak investigations surrounding foodborne illness. FDA states that this will improve their ability to identify the sources and causes of foodborne illness outbreaks. This Foodborne…
A free webinar entitled “Risk-Based Thinking in Agricultural Food Safety” will be hosted by the CONTACT team (formed with the support of the Specialty Crops Research Initiative from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture) on Jan. 13. Dr. Donald Schaffner, Distinguished Professor and Extension Specialist at Rutgers University’s School of Environmental and Biological ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just announced they will be hosting two virtual public meetings to discuss the recently released revisions to Subpart E of the FDA’s Produce Safety Rule “Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption Relating to Agricultural Water.” Subpart E address agricultural water requirements for ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this month released its first domestic investigation of a foodborne illness outbreak associated with leafy greens grown in a Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) operation. The outbreak, with cases reported from June 10, 2021 to August 18, 2021, was caused by Salmonella Typhimurium and resulted in 31 illnesses and four ...
Last week, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) released a host of resources to assist the food and agriculture industry in navigating supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Below is a compilation of the resources: Report Supply Chain Problems/Request Assistance from the FDA: Food facilities and farms can report a closure or a ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and state and local partners investigated a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Oranienburg infections linked to whole, fresh onions imported from the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, in cooperation with the Mexican competent authorities. As of February 2, 2022, CDC has declared this outbreak over. ...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), along with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and state and local partners, is investigating a multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to packaged leafy greens. On January 7, 2022, as a result of continued investigations, the producer issued a voluntary recall of additional products after detecting ...