Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
Project Summary / AbstractLocal Food Hub, Inc. (LFH) will incorporate FSMA outreach and compliance, as well as support for organic transition as appropriate, into its existing GAPs technical support and cost-share program. These efforts will help small-scale specialty crop growers in Virginia access larger markets, improve on-farm food safety practices, and meet regulatory requirements in an efficient and integrated manner. Local Food Hub will build upon well-established training and resource collaborations with Virginia Cooperative Extension and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, along with recent inclusion in the Southern Center for FSMA Training and the Produce Safety Alliance's (PSA) Educator Group, to tailor training, outreach, and technical assistance to a diverse group of specialty crop growers in Virginia. It will also draw on existing and developing curriculum and resources related to FSMA's Produce Safety Rule.A cornerstone component of this project includes one-on-one farm visits and technical assistance as a follow-up to PSA training. While labor intensive, LFH has seen firsthand how essential this approach is through its work on GAP certification with small farms. In addition, this project addresses specific gaps in and limitations of available resources that have been identified by LFH through its work with small farms in Virginia. These include a need for more customization, efficiency and integration of record-keeping systems and processes; worker training resources and delivery mechanisms relevant to small-scale production systems; and a format for critical evaluation of existing farm systems and infrastructure to plan for regulatory compliance, including awareness of funding and support options for required upgrades.IntroductionLocal Food Hub was founded to assist growers in overcoming barriers to increased market opportunities. These challenges have come to include food safety compliance and a rapidly evolving regulatory environment. In response, Local Food Hub is incorporating FSMA outreach and compliance, as well as support for organic transition as appropriate, into its existing GAPs technical support and cost-share program. These efforts will help small-scale specialty crop growers in Virginia to access larger markets, improve on-farm food safety practices, and meet regulatory requirements in an efficient and integrated manner.Many growers within Local Food Hub's network of over 60 produce farms have adopted Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) and in several cases achieved USDA GAP certification. However, the implementation of FDA's Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) has raised concerns and uncertainties in the farming community about differences between the new regulatory requirements compared to GAP standards, as well as how oversight and verification activities will be divided between FDA and USDA. These regulatory changes come at a time when the organic sector and consumer demands for transparency on sustainable farming practices are expanding rapidly, providing market opportunities that require additional time and investment. Given that farmers have limited resources to navigate through regulations and develop the appropriate procedures and record-keeping systems for compliance, the ability to integrate FSMA, GAP, and NOP regulations in a practical and efficient way will enhance LFH's technical assistance and ensure that growers are working towards FSMA compliance while continuing to meet market-driven GAP and NOP standards as appropriate.Local Food Hub works with a diverse group of farms that fall along the entire spectrum of FSMA regulations, with new partner producers entering its supplier network each year. In addition to workshops and trainings, support often involves specialized on-the-ground technical assistance for growers to understand where they fall in terms of regulations, evaluate infrastructure and resources to determine what is feasible, and understand how market expectations and requirements must be factored in. Larger buyers are increasingly requiring more sophisticated forms of supply-chain verification and advanced auditing, and it is likely that FSMA implementation will continue to drive this trend.Through FY2014 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program funding, Local Food Hub established a multi-tiered quality assurance and cost-share program to advance GAPs implementation on small, family farms within its network of over 60 specialty crop producers. A major component of this project was providing extensive technical assistance and audit cost-share services for a pilot group of these farms to successfully create food safety plans and achieve USDA GAP certification in 2015.Support through the Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program will build on that work by providing FDA-approved grower training utilizing PSA curriculum, incorporating FSMA compliance into outreach services, and providing guidance on NOP and organic transition when needed. This integrated approach will secure an efficient path forward for small, diversified farm operations to achieve regulatory compliance and certification requirements in one comprehensive farm and food safety plan.Because of its extensive on-the-ground experience and successful collaboration with Virginia Cooperative Extension, Local Food Hub was included in the USDA NIFA funded project to develop the Southern Center for FSMA Training (based at University of Florida) representing the needs of specialty crop growers in Virginia. The Southern Center for FSMA Training, representing a consortium of 15 land grant universities and 3 non-profit organizations across the south, has prioritized the need for partnership with the private and non-profit sectors to enhance training and outreach for small to mid-size farms. Participation in the Southern Center enables LFH staff to play a role in the development of outreach materials and secure necessary credentials and resources to offer FDA-approved FSMA training to Virginia growers. Funding through the FSOP would allow Local Food Hub to bring FDA-approved training on FSMA's Produce Safety Rule to growers in central Virginia and provide the essential support to work directly with specialty crop producers as they integrate knowledge gained through training to practical applications and investments on-farm.These successful collaborations ensure that LFH is well positioned to provide training and assistance to growers, as well as develop resources and approaches that complement existing and developing materials on FSMA.The specialty crop growers in Local Food Hub's network support this project and recognize the value of customized technical assistance and cost-share opportunities to achieve regulatory compliance and meet market demands for on-farm food safety standards. This customized approach enables existing training curriculum and resources to be tailored to a wide variety of farming systems and scales.There is concern within the community of small to mid-size farms in Virginia about how FSMA implementation will affect their businesses, especially in terms of the time and resources needed to meet and demonstrate compliance. Specifically, growers are concerned about:Avoiding audit fatigue and confusion about regulatory oversightNeed for customized educational materials, in accessible formats with visual components, that are based on real farm experiences and layouts in the central Virginia regionAdaptable and integrated record-keeping systemsEffective worker training resources and delivery systems for small farm operationsEvaluation of infrastructure and implementing required upgrades to achieve compliance (including knowledge about federal and state support programs)
Animal Health Component
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Research Effort Categories
Basic
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Applied
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Developmental
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Goals / Objectives
ObjectivesObjective 1 Work with LFH partner farms to determine level of FSMA coverage, build customized work-plans to achieve compliance, and evaluate integration of GAPs and NOP into these plans.Objective 2 Provide one-on-one technical assistance through farm visits and work sessions, as a follow-up to PSA Grower Training on FSMA's Produce Safety Rule.Objective 3 Develop complementary FSMA resources related to integrated record-keeping strategies, farm worker training for small, diversified farms, and on-farm infrastructure upgrades.Objective 4Develop and administer a communication plan with the Southern Center for FSMA Training, including an evaluative component with both qualitative and quantitative measures.
Project Methods
MethodsStakeholder involvement: Local Food Hub will work closely with its network of partner farms, Virginia Cooperative Extension, and the Southern Center for FSMA Training to develop all project-related materials and services. LFH relies heavily on input from growers, as well as observations made on farm visits and through the course of work, to inform the creation of resources and services. Food safety experts from Virginia Cooperative Extension will collaborate with LFH on grower trainings and serve as a resource for advanced technical support. The Southern Center will serve as the backbone support organization for outreach and training efforts.Evaluation methods: An evaluation strategy will be developed, in concert with the Southern Center, to track progress over the course of the project, demonstrating participating farms knowledge gained and trajectory towards FSMA compliance. Survey administration (both paper and online versions) at the completion of the project will include both qualitative and quantitative questions.Techniques to be employed: The project director will establish procedures and materials for project implementation, and conduct the on-farm evaluations and work sessions, as a follow-up to PSA Grower Training. Print materials will be created by the project director. A contractual videographer will be employed to produce video footage that complements print resources created.Expected results: Participating farms will have a clear understanding of where their business falls in terms of FSMA compliance, and a logical and realistic work-plan. For those farms with integrated farm and food safety plans (FSMA, GAPs, NOP), integrated record-keeping systems will be developed that are realistic for the farm's scale and resources. Both print and video resources will be developed, relating to integrated record-keeping, worker training for small farms, and infrastructure evaluation and improvement. These resources will be shared widely, and available in both digital and paper / DVD formats to ensure wider access. Local Food Hub plans to communicate the results of these activities at the Southern Center annual meeting in January 2018 and provide access to developed materials as they are completed.Limitations: The primary limitation to this proposed plan of work is related to the short term of the grant, given that effective change on farms often requires multiple years. The fact that Local Food Hub has established technical assistance systems in place, as well as a track record for helping farms with GAP certification, will help mitigate this limitation.?