Non Technical Summary
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently published the Food Traceability Rule as part ofthe implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which requires additionalrecordkeeping for entities that manufacture, process, pack, or hold particular foods that are part ofFDA's Food Traceability List. This means that FSMA now applies to retail establishments andrestaurants, entities that thus far have only been regulated under their jurisdiction's Food Code. Withthis rule requiring compliance in 2026, the retail food industry needs a rapid solution to learn aboutthe requirements for this traceability rule and the best way to implement practices to adhere to thenewly applicable legislation. This Community Outreach Project aims to fill this gap with thedevelopment and delivery of a hybrid educational program specifically for the retail food industry toimprove understanding and assist with implementation of the Food Traceability Rule. This will beaccomplished using two objectives: 1) developing and implementing a traceability training programwith a focus on small retailers and 2) developing and implementing an evaluation plan to assesseffectiveness and impact of the training program. Successful completion of this project is anticipatedto reach approximately 525 retail and foodservice operators across the U.S, with a focus on smalland hard-to-reach operators. Those who attend the training will learn about the key details of theFood Traceability Rule, develop valuable skills to apply information to their establishment, andunderstand how to work with their supplier for mutual compliance with the new regulation.

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
712	5010	3020	100%

Knowledge Area
712 - Protect Food from Contamination by Pathogenic Microorganisms, Parasites, and Naturally Occurring Toxins;

Subject Of Investigation
5010 - Food;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;

Goals / Objectives
The major goals of this project are to 1) develop and implement a traceability training program with a focus on small retailers and 2) develop and implement an evaluation plan to assess effectiveness and impact of the training program.

Project Methods
A survey will be created and distributed through food industry stakeholders to determine the retail/food service industry's awareness of the food traceability rule and their educational needs for implementing the rule; focus groups and listening sessions will also be conducted. These results will be used to inform course development.A training program focused on traceability will be developed for retail/food service operators. This will include a 2 hour online course to be completed asynchronously, as well as a 4 hour course with the option of being delivered in person or online. Multiple methods of learning will be incorporated to include pre-work, lectures, discussion, videos, and other activities.The course will be piloted with 10 NC operators; this will allow the team to make any necessary changes to the course.The course will then be implemented. All operators attending the course willcomplete the 2-hour asynchronous, online section before attending a synchronous session. PD and Co-Is will hold in-person synchronous sessions in each of their states (North Carolina and Ohio), as well as in three other states (proposed California, Nebraska and Massachusetts) to ensure geographical representation. Additionally,10 synchronous sessions will be held over a video-based platform to reach operators who may not have access to the in-person sessions.Each synchronous session will have a maximum registration of 35 people, totaling 525 retailers. Participants will be recruited through connections with industry and industry trade groups with a focus on small retail businesses. The team will also leverage partnerships with Extension personnel in local communities to connect with hard-to-reach operators that may not be involved with industry trade groups.A pre- and post-course survey will be developed to evalaute the efficacy of the course and how well the course-learning experiences corresponds to the learning objectives.Questions in the course evaluation will be determined by the needs assessment and the course's learning objectives, and will measure knowledge and self efficacy.A follow-up survey will also be created for completion after the compliance date for the Food Traceability Rule to determine the effectiveness of helping operators navigate the new regulation. Questions for the follow-up survey will be determined based on the needs assessment and requirements for operators to comply with the Food Traceability Rule. A follow-up focus group will also be conducted after all sessions are complete to gather qualitative data on how the course can be improved to more effectively help operators comply with the regulation.Data will be analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods to assess learning outcomes. This analysis will help the team to identify necessary improvements to the curriculum and identify the most effective educational strategies at improving knowledge and application.The project team will broadly disseminate the findings and recommendations originating from this project via conferences and regional meetings and in a peer-reviewed publication.