October 14, 2022

Hello Produce Safety Alliance Listserv Members:

Happy Fall! This packed newsletter includes several new resources including proposed Subpart E – Agricultural Water supplemental slides, exciting training opportunities, and job listings. It also contains some sad news.

As many are likely aware, Hank Giclas died on August 5, 2022. Hank had a long and productive career in the produce industry and we are thankful that Hank dedicated part of his efforts to supporting the Produce Safety Alliance (PSA). From the very beginning, Hank engaged with the PSA as one of our Working Committee co-chairs, then moved on to become part of the PSA Steering Committee. He was always engaged, offering insights and suggestions that consistently moved us in a positive direction. His kind approach and practical outlook made his contributions extremely valuable to helping us reach our goals. We find comfort in knowing Hank led a wonderful life where he shared his knowledge and motivated others to always move forward. We are thankful for all the time he dedicated to the PSA. May he rest in peace.
Produce Safety Alliance Website Migration














The PSA website looks much different! As a result of a new web publishing content management system at Cornell University, the PSA website has migrated to a new platform. This migration means that all PSA materials and webforms in English were impacted, however Rob Way, our Multimedia Developer and Database Manager, has been working hard to make sure that the new website is as practical, and easy to navigate as the previous one.

Please be aware that hyperlinks to our resources and materials have changed with the new website. Redirects are temporarily in place to send users to the correct location within the PSA website, however we recommend updating any PSA hyperlinks within your resources.
New Resources
Supplemental Slides for Proposed Subpart E (Agricultural Water) Requirements
Supplemental slides have been developed to support PSA Grower Trainings while FDA finalizes new Subpart E (Agricultural Water) Rule requirements. These slides summarize the proposed Subpart E (Agricultural Water) requirements and the proposed compliance date extension for pre-harvest agricultural water requirements. Teaching notes contain suggestions for including the material in the PSA Grower Training Curriculum and presentation tips. The Supplemental Slides are available in both English and Spanish.
Produce Safety Factors to Consider when Using Biological Soil Amendments of Animal Origin (BSAAO): Factsheet 
This factsheet is intended for growers using biological soil amendments of animal origin (BSAAO). The resource summarizes risk factors and recommended practices for growers using BSAAO, and links to template record-keeping documents and other grower resources. This factsheet is currently available in English and will be available in Spanish very soon.
 
Monkeypox Information for the Food Industry
The Institute for Food Safety at Cornell University (IFS@CU) developed a monkeypox factsheet specifically targeting the food industry. Monkeypox is much less transmissible than COVID-19 and basic good manufacturing practices will control the small risk of food-associated transmission. This factsheet, available in English and Spanish, summarizes monkeypox symptoms and outlines practices that the food industry can do to minimize transmission.
Produce Safety Rule Inspections and Voluntary USDA Audits
The Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) published guidance to “better explain the differences between mandatory requirements of the PSR and the requirements within market-driven buyer-specific audits”. Since this is a common topic of discussion during produce safety trainings, newsletter readers may find this to be a valuable resource!
Accessibility Resource: Helpful Tips for Making Presentations Accessible, From Your Disabled Colleagues 
The International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Integrations published “Helpful Tips For Making Presentations Accessible, From Your Disabled Colleagues”, a resource sharing recommendations for making public presentations more accessible to color-blind, hearing or visual impaired, neurodiverse, autistic, and dyslexic participants. The considerations and resources highlighted in this article are important for those developing educational content.
Educational Opportunities
Bridging the GAPs: Approaches for Treating Preharvest Agricultural Water On-Farm (Train-the-Trainer Course)
Fruit and vegetable growers are continually assessing their operations to determine where they can limit risk and increase productivity. As a result, many have expressed interest in learning more about how on-farm preharvest water treatment systems work and how they may fit within their current setup. Come for a day-long training session in Savannah, Georgia on January 4th to gain exposure to this newly developed curriculum so that you may offer it to your stakeholders. Goals of the course are to teach participants about different approaches to treating water on-farm; how to implement these systems to meet requirements of the Produce Safety Rule; and how to verify that the system is operating as intended. Registration deadline is December 16th and the course is capped at 30 participants.
Registration link: https://tinyurl.com/BTG-TTT.
Bridging the GAPs: Approaches for Treating Preharvest Agricultural Water On-Farm
(Virtual Grower Training Course)
Come for two ½-day virtual sessions with extension specialists across the US to learn about different approaches to treating water on-farm, how to implement these systems to meet requirements of the Produce Safety Rule, and how to verify that the system is operating as intended. Anyone interested in production water treatment (e.g. growers, extension, policy makers) should attend this virtual session on December 8 (1pm-5pm ET) and December 9 (10am-2pm ET). Registration link: https://tinyurl.com/5n6h2u64. Space is limited!
Job Opportunity! Penn State University Extension Educator
Penn State Extension is recruiting a qualified candidate to provide food safety and quality programming and assistance for the Pennsylvania food industries, food service/retail operations, and consumers, in partnership with Extension educators at Penn State, as well as staff and faculty in the Department of Food Science at Penn State. The candidate will develop, gather, and organize food safety and quality information, develop displays, posters, publications, videos, and curricula (online or in-person) for dissemination across the Commonwealth, including the Food Safety Management Certification Program, Home Food Preservation, and volunteer food safety training, in Centre, Mifflin, Juniata, Clearfield, and Clinton counties. Please view and apply for the position on Workday. 
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