FDA listening session on fresh produce food safety standards

Washington Ag Today April 23, 2010 Small farm operators and interested parties in Washington and Oregon are invited to comment on fresh produce food safety standards being developed by the US Food and Drug Administration. A listening session co-hosted by the Oregon Department of Agriculture and Washington State Department of Agriculture is scheduled for May 5th in Portland with officials from FDA, the US Department of Agriculture, and the two hosting state departments of agriculture on hand to take input.

FDA is currently developing fresh produce safety standards for farms and packing houses along with strategies and cooperative efforts to ensure compliance. USDA’s Leanne Skelton has been working with the FDA.

Skelton: “And our role is to help them better understand our industry so they write something that makes good sense.”

And FDA’s Dr. Jeff Farrar says the idea is basically;

Farrar: “Get this proposed rule right before we write it.”

The Pacific Northwest Small Farms Listening Session will be held Wednesday, May 5th from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon at the Sheraton Inn Portland Airport.

A special report from USDA’s Economic Research Service concludes that U.S. fruit producers, who currently export almost 500-million dollars in fruit products to Japan, would benefit if Japan reduced its tariffs. The report also says U.S. fruit producers would benefit if they could consistently meet Japan’s phytosanitary standards, either by improvement U.S. management and technology or by revising Japan’s strict standards.