WVU Extension will offer a series of food safety sessions for fruit and vegetable growers.
With new safety regulations and procedures in place for farmers and agribusiness owners, West Virginia University Extension Service is helping local growers navigate these changes while providing education and training to ensure consumer safety.
WVU Extension Service joins the West Virginia Department of Agriculture and West Virginia State University to offer a series of Food Safety Modernization Act training sessions for fruit and vegetable growers, as well as others interested in learning about produce safety. The first Producer Safety Alliance-approved training will be held Aug.31 at the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center (200 Armory Dr.) in Beckley. A second session will be offered at the Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College on September 14 in Moorefield. The third session will be held on Sept. 21 at the Comfort Suites (285 White Oaks Blvd.) in Bridgeport. Each session runs from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The course will provide a foundation of Good Agricultural Practices and co-management information, FSMA produce safety rule requirements and details on how to develop a farm food safety plan. The PSA Grower Training Course is one way to fulfill the FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirement as outlined in §112.22(c).
The cost for the training is $50 per person which includes a PSA grower training manual, refreshments and a Certificate of Course Attendance from the Association of Food and Drug Officials upon completion of the course and subsequent submission of necessary documentation.
Space is very limited and reservations will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis. More details, including reservation information can be found at: http://epay.wvsto.com/WVU/WVUANREvents/Default.aspx.
The sessions are offered at substantial cost-savings to growers through grants from The Benedum Foundation, The Northeast Extension Risk Management Education and Northeast Sustainable Agriculture, Research and Education.
For more information about these training session, please contact Dee Singh-Knights at dosingh-knights@mail.wvu.edu or 304.293.7606
For more information about WVU Extension Service, visit extension.wvu.edu.
-WVU-
tec/8/22/17
CONTACT: Tara Curtis, WVU Extension Service
304.293.7996; tecurtis@mail.wvu.edu