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from 25 PSA Train-the-Trainer Courses hosted in the
United States during the first 8 months after the training
launched (14 September 2016 to 24 April 2017) are
included in the present report.
Statistical analysis
Evaluation results were collated, and analyses were
conducted using SPSS Statistics for Windows 2012
(SPSS, IBM, Armonk, NY). The Pearson chi-square test
was used to identify differences in the way demographic
groups responded to questions about the sufficiency of
the curriculum. Differences identified with the chi-square
test were considered significant at P < 0.05. Adjusted
standardized residual examination was used to identify
where those differences occurred and in what direction.
Adjusted standardized residuals >2.0 or <-2.0 were
considered significant.
The Wald chi-square test was used to approximate the
effect of training date on responses to questions about
the sufficiency of the curriculum. Estimated marginal
means were used to predict participant responses later in
the period studied when the Wald chi-square test results
revealed an effect of training date on participant responses.
Differences in self-reported knowledge gained among
PSA Grower Training modules was assessed using
Friedman's test, and differences were considered significant
at P < 0.05. Post hoc analysis was conducted using the
Wilcoxon signed-rank test with a conservative Bonferroni
adjustment. Because eight groups were assessed pairwise,
a P-value of < 0.002 was considered significant (i.e., 0.05
divided by 28). When post hoc analyses were conducted on
the PSA Train-the-Trainer modules, the significance level
was set at P < 0.017 because three groups were compared
pairwise.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Demographics
Of the 819 participants in PSA Train-the-Trainer
Courses held from 14 September 2016 to 24 April 2017,
those who responded were predominantly Caucasian and
26 to 65 years of age, with roughly an even split between
the genders (Table 1). The largest professional category
comprised extension educators (38.1% of participants),
and most participants (73.9%) reported having < 10
years of produce safety training experience (Table 1).
The relatively few years of experience reported by PSA
Trainers is indicative of the emerging field of produce
safety education and the impact of the FSMA. Presented
over 2 days, the PSA Train-the-Trainer Course benefits
participants, especially those with limited produce
safety training experience, by allowing more time to
discuss the complex training content, ask questions, and
identify potential challenges to teaching the content

through structured breakout sessions. The PSA has begun
working with the FSMA Regional Centers to develop PSA
Advanced Trainer Courses that will continue to develop
trainers by providing in-depth technical background
on specific produce safety topics and instructor tips to
increase participant engagement.
Suitability of the PSA Train-the-Trainer Course
As a national standardized training program, the PSA
course content must be suitable for teaching new PSA
Trainers how to deliver the PSA Grower Training Course.
The majority of participants indicated that the learning
objectives and critical concepts were clear, inclusive, and
necessary to the training (Table 2). Women were more
likely to report that objectives were unclear (χ2 (2, N = 702)
= 8.666, P = 0.013). Because the evaluation instrument
also contained a comment box asking respondents to fill in
what they thought was unclear, this gender difference may
be related to general differences in survey participation
and information seeking. Survey studies have revealed that
women are more likely to participate in mail-in and online
surveys in general (8, 14). Gender differences have been
studied extensively in the area of seeking additional healthrelated information but have not focused specifically on
food safety information. In general, women are more likely
to seek additional health-related information, and these
findings may be extrapolated to explain why women would
be more likely to indicate when clarification is needed in the
PSA Curricula (4). However, these gender differences were
not found in other categories of this study. Consultants (χ2
(5, N = 742) = 11.375, P = 0.044) and those with master's
degrees (χ2 (7, N = 740) = 16.337, P = 0.022) were more
likely to report that objectives or critical concepts were
missing. Participants who indicated that components
were missing may have considered audit requirements to
be critical components of produce safety training. When
participants were asked what additional materials the PSA
could provide, 13% (17 of 132) specifically requested food
safety plan-related resources, even though a food safety plan
is not required by the PSR.
One noteworthy modification made to the PSA
Grower Training Curriculum after the pilot courses were
completed was addition of detailed trainer notes to support
the presentation slides. These notes include regulatory
requirements, teaching examples, and resources for more
information. The same teaching notes are included in the
manuals that PSA Trainers and PSA Grower Training
Course attendees receive. Most participants (92%) agreed
that the amount of teaching notes was sufficient to support
PSA trainers and future participants in the Grower Training
Course. Women were more likely to report that the notes
were sufficient (χ2 (2, N = 762) = 6.367, P = 0.041).

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