August 2024 - 4

EDITOR'S LETTER
New food safety
rules affect water,
crop handling
T
his year is flying by. It's hard to believe
summer's almost gone.
With harvesting and plantings for fall
harvests, there's so much on growers' plates.
Growers and others in the supply chain work
hard to ensure they grow, harvest and ship
safe food that won't spark a recall or incident
that sickens the consumers who purchase the
fruits of growers' fields.
The month of May brought a big change to the Produce Safety
Rule. The FDA updated agricultural water requirements, which were
published in the Federal Register. Similar to proposed revisions
published in 2021, the changes affect pre-harvest water (agricultural
water used during growing non-sprout covered produce), according
to the Produce Safety Alliance (PSA), a collaboration between Cornell
University, USDA and FDA.
Some of the factors growers should consider in the changes include
location and nature of the water source (whether groundwater or
surface water) and the type of application method (such as overhead
sprinkler or spray, drip, furrow, flood and seepage irrigation).
PSA recommends growers check the FDA's FSMA Final Rule on
Pre-Harvest Agricultural Water page for current information, tinyurl.
com/bdzykh4k.
Food safety is the focus of this issue of Fruit Growers News. On page 6,
we cover the first line of defense, the importance of worker training
crucial to food handling safety.
To learn how FSMA requirements affect postharvest handling and
sanitation, our article on page 8 shows growers how to track the flow of
produce from the field through the packing facility, the start of a food
safety risk assessment.
Our new column, Fresh Views, written by Fruit + Vegetable 40 Under
Forty honorees, continues to add great insight. On page 22, Lenny
Burger, of the five generation Pennsylvania Burger's Farm, discusses
how keeping on top of all the paperwork involved in running a farm,
including food safety documentation, is a priority for family members
who are hands-on involved in everything about the farm.
EDITORIAL
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EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
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AUGUST 2024 | VOLUME 63 | ISSUE 8
The opinions and views expressed by authors, contributors and
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the editors and publisher. Appearance in Fruit Growers News does not
constitute endorsement by Great American Media Services or Fruit
Doug Ohlemeier, Assistant Editor
Growers News of the advertiser, its products, or services. Great American
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4 | AUGUST 2024
-Doug
August 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2024
