Western Growers has developed FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) implementation guides to assist Western Growers member in understanding and complying with the new food safety laws.
Members can access the implementation guides for the following rules:
- Produce Safety Rule: Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption. Click here to access the implementation guide.
- Preventive Controls Rule for Human Food: Current Good Manufacturing Practice and Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food. Click here to access the implementation guide.
Additionally, in preparation for official Produce Safety Rule on-farm inspections beginning in 2019, the California Department of Food and Agriculture is now offering a series of non-regulatory on-farm readiness reviews. These are designed to give farmers a better understanding of what they can expect from a routine produce safety inspection. To learn about the steps and requirements to schedule an on-farm readiness review, visit https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/producesafety/educate.html.
On-farm readiness reviews will also be available soon in Arizona and Colorado, most likely this summer. For updates and more information, visit the Arizona Department of Agriculture website and the Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado State University Extension joint website.
For additional resources about FSMA or for more information, visit Western Growers’ FSMA Portal at https://www.wga.com/fsma. The newly-launched portal houses information on the new FSMA rules, industry webinars to better understand each rule, compliance dates and more.
