Recent News & Research Updates
Guidance Update
Livestock Industry Traceability Model
Judson Armentrout, Director for Sustainability Practice, FoodLogiQ, presents a case study of an industry led national initiative in the livestock industry highlighting lessons learned and best practices that may be applicable to the produce traceability initiative.
United Fresh Produce Traceability Initiative
The Produce Traceability Initiative, sponsored by the Canadian Produce Marketing Association, Produce Marketing Association and United Fresh Produce Association, is designed to help the industry maximize the effectiveness of current traceback procedures, while developing a standardized industry approach to enhance the speed and efficiency of traceability systems for the future, For more information on this initiative, see www.producetraceability.org.
The Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
www.foodsafety.gov >>Larry Gabriel, Assistant Director of Regulatory Programs, N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Food and Drug Division, explains the standards for good agricultural practices (GAPs) set forth in the 1998 originating document. The FDA recently announced a comment period to seek information about current agricultural practices and conditions, risk factors associated with these practices, and possible measures that FDA could implement that would enhance the safety of fresh produce. Within the same course of time, The Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) drafted a Model Code of Practice for Produce Safety from a request initiated by the Tomato Industry in Florida. Gabriel shares an update on the “Model Code” and gives participating producers from North Carolina a chance to respond with questions. AFDO Feb 2009 update >>
Congressional Update
Food Safety on the Farm: Federal Programs and Selected Proposals
This Congressional Research Service Report was prepared for members and committees of Congress. It includes information on H.R. 759, H.R. 1332, and S. 510, all of which contain provisions requiring FDA to regulate production and harvesting practices for fruits and vegetables, and H.R. 875, in which a more broadly cast provision mandates regulation of all “food production facilities” (essentially, farms and ranches) for food safety. Read more
Recent Legislation Introduced in Congress
The recent peanut butter recall prompted a series of legislative hearings in February and March. Read more
Congressional Primer of Food Safety Update
Kelli Ludlum, Director of Congressional Relations, American Farm Bureau, provides a Congressional primer and update for food safety and protection.
Tracking Current and Pending Legislation
A number of food safety bills are currently before Congress. You can read access any bill introduced in the U.S. Congress at Thomas.gov maintained by the US Library of Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov/.
Update from N.C. Fresh Produce Safety Task Force Working Group 3
This working group strives to ensure that industry and public policy decisions regarding fresh produce safety are informed by science-based information. The group has agreed on several base tenets for a produce safety policy platform in North Carolina. Working Group 3 page >>.
Kannapolis institute director named
New Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizer May Minimize Viral Transmission, Including Norovirus - Science Daily, EurekAlert! – 08/26/2008
A newly developed ethanol-based hand sanitizer may significantly impact public health by minimizing the transmission of multiple viruses, including norovirus, from food handlers and care providers. The researchers from the University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and North Carolina State University, Raleigh report their findings in the August 2008 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology....
