The Land & Livestock Post December 15, 2012
News
Farmers can wash their hands of food safety fears By Kathleen PhilliPs Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
As winterapproaches and produce growers begin to plan for the next crop, now is a good time to wash away any chance of food contamination in the farming operation, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service horticulturist. “The issue of food safety on the farm is important,” said Joe Masabni, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service specialist at College Station. “We’re working to educate producers about the GAPs, or Good Agricultural Practices, and Good Handling Practices for all the issues from harvesting to packaging. “It’s part of our life nowadays. Producers have to continue to learn for any size operation. From the small farm to the big organic or inorganic 100,000-acre operation, you have to be aware of current issues and get educated and keep up with the trends of the business,” Masabni said. Masabni presented the information recently at a turf and landscape field day at Texas A&M University in College Station. He and his AgriLife Extension colleagues Juan Anciso and Ashley Gregory, both of Weslaco, developed materials about food safety training on the farm with grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Texas Department of Agriculture. “It’s all about learning how employee health management practices can reduce the potential for contamination of the produce,” Masabni said. “We have been seeing more
and more food contamination issues related to fresh fruit or vegetables. So the increase in these incidents of salmonella and E. coli contamination in fruits and vegetables is what got the government interested in addressing this problem.” Initially, the team did workshops to teach people who harvest or work with produce from the field to the market. But that was not enough to educate continuously all people who are employed in the industry, Masabni said. “So we have a booklet available, and there is a companion online training program a person can use to get a certificate stating that they learned about proper practices to avoid the food safety issues,” Masabni said. The booklet, “Texas GAPs and GHPs Food Safety Training Curriculum,” is available Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo by Kathleen Phillips for $10 from agrilifebookstore. As winter approaches and produce growers begin to plan for the next crop, now is a good time to wash away any chance of org/. The online course can be food contamination in the farming operation, according to Joe Masabni, a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service horticulturist. found at bit.ly/SJoKGJ. People who work in the industry can use down time to learn about good agriculture and handling practices at bit.ly/SJoKGJ. Masabni said mostly the larger fruit and vegetable growers and packing companies currently have been accessing the certificate program, but he encouraged all who work in or manage any component of the produce industry to take the time to complete the course. “I haven’t seen really an impact on the small scale or the organic farms, because it’s not mandatory yet,” Masabni said. “Yet, it’s a very easy class to take or booklet to study, and the impact is significant.” He said because of globaliza-
Which list are you on?
See SAFETY, Page 22
Get your year off to a NICE start with a Boyd Built Feeder!
Boyd Industries, Inc.
8
Phone: (800)611-3540 • wwwBoydBuilt.com • Fax: (940)433-8540