It's time to get up to speed! Who must comply? By when? What does this have to do with Post-Harvest Food Safety Training? How do hoophouses fit into the mix?

Food safety and good agricultural practices have steadily become a requirement to sell to wholesale outlets. Now many direct sale customers are requiring certain food safety standards be adopted. Phil Tocco, MSU Extension pre-harvest food safety educator and Michelle Walk, MSU Extension Educator, will touch on the key concepts of the voluntary model of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), including Group GAP, and discuss what farms with food sales of more than $25,000 must do to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), a rule that is now final, and the earliest compliance dates for some farms begin one year after the effective date of the final rule, depending on scale and circumstance.

Phil will walk participants through a mock audit onsite at Pond Hill Farm. We will discuss the importance of implementing and communicating food safety practices even if you are not seeking certification.

A simple soup supper will be included. Get your tickets here. For more information, contact Jen at 231-622-5252.

Thanks to MSU Extension and to Grain Train Natural Foods Market for making this event possible. 

Event photo courtesy of Michelle Walk.