Better Process Control School
November 11 - 14
Fayetteville, AR
To comply with USDA and FDA regulations food manufacturers of low-acid or acidified foods must operate at all times under the supervision of a person who has attended a Better Process Control School. This training uses the most updated material revised by federal regulatory agencies “Canned Foods: Principles of Thermal Process Control, Acidification and Container Closure Evaluation (9th Edition)”. Upon completion of the 4 days of training and obtaining a minimum of 70% in all exams, the participant will receive certification in Acidified, Retort and Aseptic processes.
Fees:
$725 for Acidified, Aseptic, and Low Acid Canned Foods (LACF) – 4 days
$600 for Acidified Foods – 2 days
Registration fees include tuition, textbook, lunch, and breaks. Parking is free.
Contact Dr. Sun Ferreira for more information.
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Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production Advisory Committee Meeting
October 23, 2 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Virtual
The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will hold a public meeting of the Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production Advisory Committee (UAIPAC). The meeting will be held via Zoom (audio and/or video) and open to the public to join virtually with advance registration. The Committee’s 12 members advise the Secretary of Agriculture on the development of policies and outreach relating to urban, indoor, and other emerging agriculture production practices as well as identify barriers to urban agriculture. These meetings leverage the expertise of the Committee members to learn how best USDA can support urban agriculture and innovative production and reduce barriers to success. This event provides a transparent opportunity for the public to participate in the committee meeting, which is a mechanism for input and guidance to USDA on urban agriculture and innovative production.
The USDA UAIPAC website will be updated with the final agenda at least 24 hours prior to the meeting.
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Pine Bluff Urban Ag Field Day
October 18, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Pine Bluff Community Center
The Arkansas Ag Tour presents an Urban and Small Farm Field Day in partnership with the City of Pine Bluff. It is a free hands-on urban agriculture demonstration where attendees can learn urban conservation practices. Free soil, pots, seedlings, seeds, garden tools, and more will be provided to attendees.
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October is Arkansas Farm to School Month!
Every year in October we celebrate Arkansas Farm to School Month across the state. This recognition is part of nationwide efforts to connect schools, early childhood education sites, and other organizations with farms to bring local, healthy food to children. The National Farm to School Network first started this trend in 2010 by having National Farm to School Month designated by Congress. Since then, more and more states have joined in with celebrations, with Arkansas participating since 2014.
Learn more about how to get involved here!
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Have an upcoming local foods event in your area that you want to share? Email us any events by the 10th of the month for it to be featured in that month's newsletter!
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Access to Local Foods Grant
Arkansas Community Foundation invites applications for projects that will increase Arkansans’ access to locally grown and produced foods and/or strengthen the local food ecosystem. This is a competitive grant cycle, with eight 1-year grant awards of $15,000 each available. This grant opportunity is focused on increasing wider community access to locally grown food, either through bringing more food to market or significant distribution to people experiencing food insecurity.
Applications will be accepted starting October 28, 2024.
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Raised Garden Bed Program
Are you passionate about growing your own fresh produce but lack the space or resources? Central Arkansas Sphinx Foundation's raised garden bed program has had an overwhelming response and they are working hard to serve everyone on their waitlist. Patience is appreciated as they strive to accommodate as many requests as possible.
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The LRSF team is here to help walk farmers through the compliance dates, requirements, and agricultural water assessments to prepare for new regulation requirements. Farms that would like assistance navigating agricultural water requirements on their operations or anything else related to the Produce Safety Rule should contact Dr. Amanda Philyaw Perez. | |
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September Grower Training a Success!
Another Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training in the books! We helped Arkansas produce growers understand how to protect the food they grow for your table from food safety risks. We had a great group of growers from backyard and beginners to large scale commercial. Thank you all for coming out for the training! If you missed this training, we will schedule 3 workshops next year. Stay tuned!
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Local Foods USDA Programs
The consumer demand for locally-produced food is creating jobs and opportunity throughout America for farms, businesses and entrepreneurs that store, process, market and distribute food locally and regionally. Farm and business opportunities continue to increase as the market share of local and regional foods grows. Across USDA, there are resources, loans and grants to help farmers, ranchers and food businesses find new opportunities in this expanding agricultural sector. Click here to connect with the many programs, research, and educational materials that can help you meet this demand.
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2024 Arkansas Food Systems Fellowship
The 2024 Arkansas Food Systems fellowship kicked off last month! Our LRSF team member Sarah Bakker is one of 24 Arkansan fellows who, over the next four months, will work to explore solutions for improving our Arkansas Food System. Thanks to the Food Systems Leadership Network at the Wallace Center for this opportunity and collaboration!
Learn more here!
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Share Grounds Services
Share Grounds is a certified commercial kitchen located in Rison, Arkansas at the Cleveland County Fairgrounds. The goal of Share Grounds is to provide an avenue for entrepreneurs who may not know how to start their own food business get started and help existing food businesses expand. The Share Grounds facility offers kitchen space rental, technical assistance, food product testing and commercial food processing and cooking equipment.
Learn more about Share Grounds here
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Share Grounds Client Featured by Farm Bureau
We are so excited about the Arkansas Farm Bureau's recent feature of Rhonda Rudder and Richland Creek Farm and Market in El Dorado!
David Hill, Share Grounds manager and LRSF team member, has worked with Richland Creek Farm and Market over the past few years to help commercialize their mayhaw jelly recipe.
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David Hill
Program Associate
Home + Commercial Value-Added
dhill@uada.edu
(501) 671-2048
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Sarah Bakker
Program Associate
Produce Safety + Infrastructure
sbakker@uada.edu
(501) 671-2012
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Evan Ware
Program Associate
Local Food Systems
eware@uada.edu
(501) 671-2166
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Thank you for reading our newsletter! Please reach out if you have any questions or need support with your local food efforts!
Sincerely,
Amanda Philyaw Perez, DrPH, MPH
Associate Professor,
Food Systems and Food Safety Specialist
Department of Horticulture,
Cooperative Extension Service
University of Arkansas System,
Division of Agriculture
2301 S. University Ave, Little Rock AR 72204
Office: 501.671.2228 | Email: aperez@uada.edu
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