Organic produce growers and food safety managers are encouraged to join the CCOF Foundation and the Western Center for Food Safety for a webinar that highlights practical guidelines on how to get ready for the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) agricultural production water requirements. Topics will include how to assess irrigation water sources—such as wells, ponds, and canals—with food safety in mind, as well as best practices for agricultural water sampling.
Are you looking for more information on the FSMA agricultural production water requirements for produce farms? Have you heard that you may need to test your irrigation water to comply with FSMA, but aren’t sure what is the best way to go about doing it? This webinar will provide a practical guide for preparing to meet the agricultural production water requirements of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule.
Our speaker Ronald Bond—water quality researcher from the Western Center for Food Safety at University of California, Davis—will review the current agricultural production water regulations of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule and highlight water microbiology basics to help growers better understand the regulations. Get up to speed on FSMA agricultural water compliance deadlines, as well as what the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is doing to reassess the agricultural water requirements.
Then, learn practical steps you can take to get ready for the requirements. Bond will highlight how to inspect sources of irrigation water with food safety in mind, as well as how to identify and mitigate against hazards that may contaminate irrigation water with pathogens. Learn best practices for taking samples for agricultural water testing. Finally, find out how to set up a water quality monitoring program for your farm and what records you can start keeping now to prepare for the FSMA agricultural production water requirements.
Time will be reserved for questions from the audience. CCOF’s Food Safety Program Manager Jacob Guth will also be on hand as a resource on the intersection of food safety and organic regulations.
About Our Speakers
Ronald “Ronny” Bond serves as a water quality researcher at the Western Center for Food Safety in the Atwill Water and Foodborne Disease Laboratory at the University of California, Davis. His current research focuses on measuring the variability of microbial water quality in agricultural systems. Through his work he collaborates with produce grower associations, irrigation districts, and individual growers to conduct research and outreach on best practices for compliance with the agricultural water requirements of the Produce Safety Rule, as well as ways to ease the burden of requirements for growers. Prior to joining the Atwill Laboratory, Bond worked at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory at the University of Southern Mississippi for 10 years, where he managed the field and laboratory logistics for the Mississippi Beach Monitoring Program and the Mississippi Shellfish Sanitation Program.
About Our Partners
Western Center for Food Safety: Established in 2008 through a partnership between the FDA and the University of California, Davis, the Western Center for Food Safety conducts research, outreach, and education programs that enhance the FDA’s implementation of the prevention-oriented activities outlined in FSMA.
NIFA (National Institute of Food and Agriculture): This webinar is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2017-70020-27242.