 |
There is a lot to report since last month. Here are the highlights:
Additional details are provided below.
|
 Save the Date: NECAFS Annual Meeting, January 10th & 11th, Boston, MA
|
|
The first NECAFS annual meeting will be held in partnership with Northeastern
Association of State Departments of Agriculture in
Boston, MA in January 10th & 11th, 2017. Registration, meeting, and lodging details coming soon.
January 10th will be a dedicated conference day. This
conference portion will provide an opportunity for sharing and learning among NECAFS partners related to their work promoting food safety in the region.
Registration, travel and lodging support is available through NECAFS for regional partners. The conference is open to anyone (inside or out of the NECAFS region) that wishes to attend.
January 11th will be a dedicated meeting day. This
meeting portion
is an opportunity for groups to gather for focused discussion and planning around regional projects. NECAF's will hold a steering team meeting focused on network development and strategic planning and provide an opportunity for direct involvement, dialog, feedback and networking among our regional partners.
|
Food Hubs and Food Safety Featured in November Webinar
|
Join the November Webinar on
Friday, November, 18th from 1:00pm - 2:30pm to hear from
Food Hubs across the region talk about
general food safety challenges, planned changes and successes in their operations.
This discussion will generally include the presenter Food Hubs' perspective on FSMA, how their facility is impacted with the Produce Rule and/or the Preventive Controls Rule, what their facility is doing to prepare, what challenges they see in regards to food safety compliance, what have been some successfully implemented food safety practices, what are ways that extension and other outreach collaborators can better serve as a partner with Food Hubs as well as other food safety topics. There will be plenty of time for questions.
|
Post Your Event to the NECAFS Public Calendar
|
The NECAFS
website is continuing to grow. We have added a
public calendar that is open for posting of upcoming workshops, webinars, meetings, events, etc. by any of our collaborators across the region. We hope that this calendar will be used extensively and serve as a resource for all stakeholder groups as a way to learn about upcoming programming as well as a way to spread the word.
How to post? It's easy. All you have to do is send a meeting invite to
[email protected].
This can be an invite from iCalendar, Outlook, or Google Calendar.
Please remember that this is a public calendar, so only include information in the invite that you would like to be made public. For example, if registration is required for an event, provide the link for registration rather than the location information to insure your attendees are registering for the event.
|
Are you Planning to Submit a Special Projects Food Safety Outreach and/or Education Grant?
|
Reminder: Proposals in response to the Special Projects Grant Program RFP are due on or before 11/15/2016 in a single PDF to [email protected]. Visit the NECAFS website for complete information on the Special Projects Grant Program.
There is no pre-proposal process for this grant program. However, if you are planning to respond to the RFP please send an email to [email protected] simply stating that you plan to submit a proposal. While this is not required, it will be very helpful in preparation as our grant review team and materials are being prepared to evaluate the proposal submissions.
|
View Recorded Regional Food Safety Project Roundtable October Webinar
|
Did you miss the Regional Food Safety Roundtable October webinar? No problem. A recording of the webinar, the powerpoint presentation, and presenter contact information are all available on the NECAFS website. This roundtable webinar featured short presentations that provided an overview of food safety projects in the region. Each presenter provided an overview of the project, its importance and how people can get in touch with you about it.
|
USDA-NIFA announces the Food Safety Outreach Program Grant Awards
|
The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded on October 19th its Food Safety Outreach Program grants for food safety education, training and technical assistance projects for producers who are impacted by the new food safety guidelines established by the FDA under FSMA. The grants will assist owners and operators of small to mid-sized farms, beginning farmers, socially-disadvantaged farmers, small processors, small fresh fruit and vegetable wholesalers, food hubs, farmers markets and others. For the complete press release and list of awards, visit the USDA-NIFA website.
Congratulations to the awardees in the Northeast Region:
-
Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York, Inc.
-
- West Virginia State University Research and Development Corp
- University of Massachusetts Amherst
- Pennsylvania State University-State Park
- Third Sector New England, Inc.
- University of Maryland
|
Financial Support available for PSA and FSPCA Training Costs
|
NECAFS will support the development of Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) Trainers and Lead Trainers and Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance (FSPCA) Lead Instructors in the region with up to $1000 in reimbursement for registration and travel expenses. The process is simple and we hope this makes the training more accessible for everyone. Visit the NECAFS website for complete information on the Training Support Stipend Program.
-------------------------------------------------------
Looking for more information on upcoming Produce Safety and Preventive Controls trainings?
Produce Safety - The PSA maintains a website with information on training requirements and a list of available courses and more information on becoming a PSA Trainer or PSA Lead Trainer. Visit the PSA website for upcoming course information.
Preventive Controls - The FSPCA maintains a website with information on training requirements and a list of available Qualified Individual courses and more information on becoming a Lead Instructor. Visit the Institute for Food Safety and Health's website for upcoming course information.
|
Stay in Touch
|
Just a reminder that there are a number of ways to stay in touch with NECAFS and each other.
eNewsletter - Please forward this to your colleagues. If someone has not received this directly, they should
subscribe to the NECAFS eNewsletter list to ensure future delivery. We plan to use this eNewsletter as a regular way to "push" news and information out to the region.
Listserv - A Listserv has also been established to foster more direct conversation among the regional group and to allow you all to "pull" information from each other. Please also consider
subscribing to the NECAFS Listserv. Send an email
to [email protected]. Leave the subject line blank. The only content of the email should be "sub NECAFS {enter your name here and delete the brackets}". To send an email to the listserv distribution list once subscribed, use [email protected].
|
| Thanks for your continued interest in NECAFS as we develop the necessary foundation for future collaboration. If you have specific questions or feedback please email [email protected].
Sincerely,
The NECAFS PD Team
Elizabeth Newbold (UVM)
Chris Callahan (UVM)
Betsy Bihn (Cornell)
Amanda Kinchla (UMass)
Luke LaBorde (Penn State)
Chris Walsh (UMD)
|
|
The Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety (NECAFS) is an FDA-funded Regional Center (RC) hosted by University of Vermont Extension, led jointly with co-directors from Cornell University, University of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania State University and The University of Maryland and in partnership with stakeholders from the Northeast Region.
|
|
Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture. University of Vermont Extension, Burlington, Vermont. University of Vermont Extension, and U.S. Department of Agriculture, cooperating, offer education and employment to everyone without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or familial status. UVM Extension helps individuals and communities put research-based knowledge to work.
|
|
|
|
|
|
