California farmers have become quite the target for Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Cal/OSHA visits. Whether these visits are warranted or come by surprise, farmers should be prepared for them, based on the following suggestions offered by labor law attorney Stacy Henderson at the recent Almond Alliance Convention, presented in this video. Read more about it in Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.
Tag: Vegetables West Magazine
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New Produce Safety Laws Not New to California Cantaloupe Farmers
On January 26, 2018 fruit, nut and vegetable farmers throughout the country began being required to follow specific food safety practices under a new federal regulation known as the Produce Safety Rule.
For now, the new regulation applies only to large farms, defined as those with annual produce sales of $500,000 or more. These are exactly the kinds of farms who supply most of the produce to your local grocery store. Smaller farms will be phased in over the next few years.
The new rule is part of a sweeping new law called the Food Safety Modernization Act, which was enacted under the Obama Administration but is just now taking effect across the nation. The law represents the first time that food safety practices have been mandatory on farms to prevent foodborne illnesses.
However, for California cantaloupe the requirements outlined in this law are nothing new. Under a unique mandatory food safety program established in 2012, California cantaloupe farmers have been required to follow set of science-based food safety practices on their farms and in their packing and cooling facilities. For the past six years, California cantaloupe farms have been inspected regularly by government auditors to ensure the practices are being followed. This program is enforced through the California Department of Food and Agriculture. You can read more about the California Cantaloupe Advisory Board’s mandatory food safety program here.
The California Cantaloupe Board is working now to ensure its required food safety practices match what is required under the new Produce Safety Rule. In many cases, the required practices for California cantaloupe farmers exceed what is required under the new federal rules.
The practices are similar to what is required of restaurants or to the precautions you might take in your own kitchen to keep food safe. They are activities designed to ensure produce is properly handed by workers who are trained to use good hygiene; to make sure farm equipment is sanitary; to ensure soils where produce is grown is safe and that measures are in place to prevent contamination of produce by wildlife or nearby domesticated animals. Additionally, farmers are required to keep written records to document their farming practices.
The goal of all these rules and laws is, of course, to make sure that produce is safe. Farmers are committed to producing safe food, but it can be challenging since most produce is grown outside and is often eaten raw. For many years, cantaloupe farmers have funded research to help them farm in the safest manner possible and, though some outbreaks associated with cantaloupe have occurred in the past, none of these outbreaks have involved cantaloupe from California.
Consumers have a role too in making sure their food is safe and proper handling in your own kitchen is important. The California Cantaloupe Advisory Board has produced a series of videos on safe handling. Please take some time to watch these so you and your family can enjoy delicious, sweet cantaloupe from California with confidence.
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Minimizing Risks for Food Recalls & What to do During Them
Any grower or packer that has experienced a food recall knows how stressful things can get and all that is at stake; yet those who have never experienced them tend to be the least prepared for a recall when it occurs. Watch this brief video interview with Rachael Dettmann Spiegel as she addressed growers, hullers and processors at the recent Almond Alliance Convention on how to prevent recalls from happening — but also how to deal with them in the event that a food recall does occur, like the one that has been all over the news recently with romaine lettuce.
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New Pesticide Laws & Regs Now Taking Effect in California
If you missed the Annual Tree & Vine Expo, Marline Azevedo with the Stanislaus County Ag Commissioner’s office provided an update on changes in laws and regulations for growers moving into 2018. Watch her brief interview as she describes two key changes in Chlorpyrifos permit conditions & pesticide use around school sites.
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Ag Council of California Works to Ensure Buy American Provision
Emily Rooney, President of the Ag Council of California recently spoke at the annual Almond Alliance Convention, sharing their organization’s efforts to defend California Agriculture in Sacramento. One of their recent successes has been working with Dr. Pan on the Buy American Provision to ensure that school lunches are not coming from commodities produced outside of the country when they are locally grown in California. Watch her video interview with California Ag Network here to learn more.
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Downy Mildew Devastates Vegetable Crops in Southern California
At the CAPCA Spring Summit in Temecula, growers and crop consultants gathered to discuss issues with pest & disease management, and how to resolve them. This year was especially rough on southern desert vegetable growers for downy mildew, as many were not prepared for all the rain we received earlier this year. Watch this brief video with UC Plant Pathologist Alexander Putman as he explains the situation this year and how to go about managing downy mildew in the field moving forward. Read more about it in Vegetables West Magazine.
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Managing Seedcorn Maggot in Tulelake Processing Onions
Seedcorn maggot has been a significant problem for processing onion growers in the Tulelake area. Watch this brief video interview with Rob Wilson, UC Farm Advisor & IREC Director, as he shares the latest chemical and cultural practices to minimize this pest in the field. Read more in Vegetables West Magazine.
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Finding a Viable Alternative to DADS for White Rot Control
White Rot is a serious enemy to garlic & onion production in the Central Valley, and the California Garlic & Onion Research Advisory Board continues to fund research to find a viable alternative solution to DADS, a material that is no longer available to the industry. Watch this interview with UC Fresno County Farm Advisor Tom Turini as he provides an update on the search for a treatment to eradicate white rot from these vegetable fields. Read more about it in the May issue of Vegetables West Magazine.
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When Farm Labor gets too Tight, Consider H2A Guestworker Program
As labor grows tighter, growers are mechanizing their operations as much as possible; however, the need for a solid seasonal labor force is not going away anytime soon. Although not an easy one to utilize, the H2A Ag guestworker program is what more and more growers and farm labor contractors are using to meet their labor needs. Watch this brief interview with Bob Erickson from Foothill Packing and Jeanne Malitz from Malitz Law as they explain the program, and how to get involved in it.