The 2022 FSPCA’s Annual Conference will be held October 19th and 20th from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. U.S. Central Time each day. This year’s FSPCA Annual Conference will feature the latest developments in the various FSPCA training curricula to support compliance with the prevention-oriented standards of FSMA, and will provide support to FSPCA Lead Instructors and course participants. The Annual Conference will also provide an interactive forum for participants to hear from FDA senior officials on inspection results, as well as from industry leaders on food safety best practices, and insights in complying with the FSMA regulations in the past year. Check here for registration information and draft agenda.  

FSPCA continues to offer Lead Instructor courses, virtually. Congratulations to FSPCA’s newest Lead Instructors!

There are a few seats remaining in both the July and August Virtual Human Food Lead Instructor courses and the August In-Person Animal Food Lead Instructor course. Enroll now to secure a seat!

Enrollment is now open for the virtual Intentional Adulteration Vulnerability Assessment Combination course on September 13-14 & 20-21, 2022. This course combines the FSPCA IA Conducting Vulnerability Assessments participant course with the FSPCA IA Vulnerability Assessment Lead Instructor course. Click here for details. Questions about the course? Contact fspca@iit.edu.

FSPCA Policy 0017, which outlines the requirements Lead Instructors must follow to register and deliver FSPCA participant courses, has been updated. The updates include options for obtaining copies of the FSPCA participant manuals and clarification on the virtual course criteria specifically remote participation identification and verification. Lead Instructors should visit the Resource Portal to review the updated policy.

A new video for Chapter 16 (Regulation Overview) of the FSPCA Preventive Controls for Human Food curriculum is now available on the HF LI Resource Portal. The new video is now formatted in a manner to help participants better understand the Preventive Controls regulation. FSPCA has archived the original Chapter 16 video. As always, FSPCA Lead Instructors may teach the chapter using the speaker notes in the PPT slides in lieu of showing the video.

LI TIP: Be sure to check the Resource Portal before you deliver a course to ensure you have the most current materials.

The Alliance Work Group tasked with updating the FSPCA Preventive Controls for Human Foods (PCHF) curriculum is still on track to meet the year-end 2022 goal for completion. This Work Group is comprised of academia, industry, and government members, with input from FSPCA and FDA. The group just completed the Allergen Preventive Controls chapter where significant modifications were made to better delineate allergen controls as either GMP-related SOPs or Allergen Preventive Controls.

The FSPCA is working on an implementation plan for updating all FSPCA PCHF Lead Instructors on the changes and will be hosting mandatory Lead Instructor webinars after the revised curriculum is piloted.

Did you know that public FSPCA participant courses are listed on the FSPCA Community? This is where you can find the core curricula created by the FSPCA in collaboration with FDA to support industry’s compliance with four of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulations. The four FSPCA participant courses being offered include Preventive Controls for Human Food (PCHF); Preventive Controls for Animal Food (PCAF); Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP); and Intentional Adulteration Vulnerability Assessments (IAVA). Food safety professionals taking these courses will better understand the nuances of the regulatory requirements and obtain hands-on experience in developing food safety plans, foreign supplier verification programs, and vulnerability assessments.

The FSPCA Community course list provides details on course dates, cost, Lead Instructor name, modality, language, and format. The participant courses are offered by FSPCA-trained Lead Instructors in two formats, instructor lead in-person or virtual. The PCHF, PCAF, and FSVP participant courses are also offered in a blended format: Part 1 online and Part Instructor-led in-person or virtual. Both parts must be completed in order to obtain the FSPCA certificate of training. For more information about the blended courses, please visit the FSPCA Website.

Electronic (PDF) versions of the FSPCA Preventive Controls for Human Food participant manuals are available for free English, Chinese, and Spanish on FSPCA’s website.

The FSPCA evaluates the need to translate course materials into other languages, subject to availability of funds and resources. FSPCA is currently developing a preferred vendor list for qualified translators and reviewers of new, or updated, FSPCA Preventive Controls for Human Food, Preventive Controls for Animal Food, and/or Intentional Adulteration Vulnerability Assessments (IAVA) training manuals and teaching materials. To be considered, please complete this form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FSPCATERT

FSPCA will contact qualified individuals, as translation/review services are needed. For a copy of the translation policy, please email fspca@iit.edu.

If understanding compliance with FDA's Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP) Regulation, or the CGMPs required under the Preventive Controls for Animal Food (PCAF) Regulation, or the U.S. Intentional Adulteration Rule specifying that “individuals assigned to work at actionable process steps (including temporary and seasonal personnel), and their supervisors are required to receive training in food defense awareness, consider the below FSPCA courses.

Manager-Food Safety/FSPCA Technical Assistance Network: https://iit7.peopleadmin.com/postings/8212

If this newsletter was forwarded to you, sign up here to receive our next quarterly newsletter. Don’t miss out on Alliance curriculum and training information, FSMA preventive controls updates, 2022 FSPCA webinars and annual conference plans, and more!