The Western Growers Science team just released a pair of documents providing guidance on pre-harvest product testing sampling plans and how to utilize specific tools during root cause analysis (RCA) investigations.

The first document titled “Considerations and Resources for Conducting an Environmental Investigation During an On-Farm RCA”, provides considerations for the benefits, challenges and limitations of doing an on-farm RCA and supplies resources for conducting an environmental investigation during an RCA in a produce growing environment.

The second document titled “Pre-harvest Product Testing Sampling Scenario Analysis”, assesses guidance on product testing sampling plans such as total grab sample numbers and total composite sample mass during pre-harvest sampling. This analysis was developed in collaboration with Dr. Matthew Stasiewicz, Assistant Professor of Applied Food Safety at the University of Illinois.

If you have any questions or would like additional information, please reach out to Western Growers Science at [email protected].