Post by Joann on May 9, 2007 14:54:47 GMT -5
This just in from MOFGA:
Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association
Special Announcement - May 9, 2007
USDA's "Good Agricultural Practices" -- Good For Whom?
by Russell Libby
Executive Director of MOFGA
Responding to last fall's E. coli 0157:H7 contamination of spinach in California, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued "Final Guidance for Safe Production of Fresh-Cut Fruits and Vegetables," which includes recommendations for good handling practices at all stages of the food production system. The FDA's goal is to minimize bacterial contamination of food.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is working closely with the FDA to implement these guidelines. The USDA's interpretation is called "Good Agricultural Practices" or GAP. USDA's goal is to have all farmers supplying major markets GAP-certified.
To become GAP-certified, each level of the food system, from farm to packer to processor to distributor, will have to be certified for the appropriate set of "Good Agricultural Practices" or "Good Handling Practices." A total of 122 farmers and distributors across the country are certified.
USDA requires GAP compliance for all processors who supply publicly funded school lunch programs. Other large buyers, such as the U.S. Department of Defense Produce Procurement Program and many large retailers across the country, are instituting similar requirements for their suppliers. Processors, in turn, are requiring their suppliers (i.e., farmers) to meet the GAP farm standards.
Here in Maine, some certified organic growers are finding it nearly impossible to get their greens onto the shelves of supermarkets. Meanwhile, every potato farm supplying a larger processor has to go through the certification process this year.
While the guidelines include many common sense practices, such as handwashing and cleanliness around processing areas, GAP standards for farms also:
suggest a 2-mile separation between crop and livestock production areas. The GAP program evaluates processors and suppliers with a scoring system that penalizes farmers who integrate crop and livestock production. This could have a disproportionately negative impact on organic farmers who commonly use an integrated approach to farm management;
discourage the use of manure or compost on crops for human consumption; and
require monitoring of: livestock and wildlife near irrigation water; compost nutrition; wildlife activity near crop areas; and other factors that, often, are beyond the control of the farmer.
USDA uses Food Safety and Inspection Service workers who currently perform grading services as on-farm inspectors. These people are trained to evaluate whether fruits or vegetables meet color and size requirements, not how a farm functions. This may explain why USDA is using a "Pass/Fail" scoring system to grade farmers. To become certified, farmers will pay annual GAP certification fees of up to $1000 per farm.
Neither FDA nor USDA uses these guidelines or the certification process to address root causes of this specific E. coli problem. The bacteria E. coli 0157:H7 is most often traced to contamination from manure produced in large feedlots. Additionally, the program asks only whether farmers have a license to spray pesticides. It does not ask what kinds of pesticides are used or how often.
If we are going to have a food safety certification program, we should have one that addresses all aspects of the problem, not just one.
MOFGA opposes any version of USDA's "Good Agricultural Practices" that does not integrate crop and livestock agriculture or maintain the viability of small, diversified farms within the agricultural system.
We will keep our constituents apprised of developments around GAP.
For a more detailed analysis, please see Russell Libby's article, "Food Safety Concerns Are Leading to Solutions That Won't Work for Small and Diversified Farms."
Joann
Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association
Special Announcement - May 9, 2007
USDA's "Good Agricultural Practices" -- Good For Whom?
by Russell Libby
Executive Director of MOFGA
Responding to last fall's E. coli 0157:H7 contamination of spinach in California, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued "Final Guidance for Safe Production of Fresh-Cut Fruits and Vegetables," which includes recommendations for good handling practices at all stages of the food production system. The FDA's goal is to minimize bacterial contamination of food.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is working closely with the FDA to implement these guidelines. The USDA's interpretation is called "Good Agricultural Practices" or GAP. USDA's goal is to have all farmers supplying major markets GAP-certified.
To become GAP-certified, each level of the food system, from farm to packer to processor to distributor, will have to be certified for the appropriate set of "Good Agricultural Practices" or "Good Handling Practices." A total of 122 farmers and distributors across the country are certified.
USDA requires GAP compliance for all processors who supply publicly funded school lunch programs. Other large buyers, such as the U.S. Department of Defense Produce Procurement Program and many large retailers across the country, are instituting similar requirements for their suppliers. Processors, in turn, are requiring their suppliers (i.e., farmers) to meet the GAP farm standards.
Here in Maine, some certified organic growers are finding it nearly impossible to get their greens onto the shelves of supermarkets. Meanwhile, every potato farm supplying a larger processor has to go through the certification process this year.
While the guidelines include many common sense practices, such as handwashing and cleanliness around processing areas, GAP standards for farms also:
suggest a 2-mile separation between crop and livestock production areas. The GAP program evaluates processors and suppliers with a scoring system that penalizes farmers who integrate crop and livestock production. This could have a disproportionately negative impact on organic farmers who commonly use an integrated approach to farm management;
discourage the use of manure or compost on crops for human consumption; and
require monitoring of: livestock and wildlife near irrigation water; compost nutrition; wildlife activity near crop areas; and other factors that, often, are beyond the control of the farmer.
USDA uses Food Safety and Inspection Service workers who currently perform grading services as on-farm inspectors. These people are trained to evaluate whether fruits or vegetables meet color and size requirements, not how a farm functions. This may explain why USDA is using a "Pass/Fail" scoring system to grade farmers. To become certified, farmers will pay annual GAP certification fees of up to $1000 per farm.
Neither FDA nor USDA uses these guidelines or the certification process to address root causes of this specific E. coli problem. The bacteria E. coli 0157:H7 is most often traced to contamination from manure produced in large feedlots. Additionally, the program asks only whether farmers have a license to spray pesticides. It does not ask what kinds of pesticides are used or how often.
If we are going to have a food safety certification program, we should have one that addresses all aspects of the problem, not just one.
MOFGA opposes any version of USDA's "Good Agricultural Practices" that does not integrate crop and livestock agriculture or maintain the viability of small, diversified farms within the agricultural system.
We will keep our constituents apprised of developments around GAP.
For a more detailed analysis, please see Russell Libby's article, "Food Safety Concerns Are Leading to Solutions That Won't Work for Small and Diversified Farms."
Joann