Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses: Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization

FOOD SAFETY MANAGEMENT TRAINING FOR SMALL AND EMERGING FOOD BUSINESSES: INTEGRATING A FOOD SAFETY CULTURE FROM CONCEPT TO COMMERCIALIZATION

Sponsoring Institution

National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Project Status

COMPLETE

Funding Source

OTHER GRANTS

Reporting Frequency

Annual

Accession No.

1014003

Grant No.

2017-70020-27256

Cumulative Award Amt.

$398,442.00

Proposal No.

2017-04978

Multistate No.

(N/A)

Project Start Date

Sep 1, 2017

Project End Date

Aug 31, 2021

Grant Year

2017

Program Code

[A4182]- Regional FSMA Center

Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS
102 Holdsworth Way
AMHERST,MA 01003

Performing Department
Food Science

Non Technical Summary
The development of shared-use processing facilities and incubator kitchens has created opportunities for small and emerging food businesses yet this audience is most challenged with navigating their way through regulation and food safety compliance while still delivering a safe, high quality food product that can be profitable and make a local economic impact. Therefore, to increase access and consumption of locally and regionally produced agricultural products, there is a strong need to provide a focused educational delivery of customized training to food entrepreneurs to understand critical food safety considerations from concept to commercialization. This project will increase market opportunities for locally produced food products by providing food safety training relevant to food product development. Integrating the culture of food safety into the product development process from the beginning will streamline the process to help entrepreneurs launch local food products more successfully.This program will develop and implement a sustainable food safety-training program specifically to small entrepreneurial processors that are in need of technical assistance to develop local food products. Key concepts from the FDA recognized Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance (FSPCA) Preventive Controls for Human Food (PCHF) standardized curriculum will be modified to meet the current needs of the target audience and better prepare them for making the transition from FSMA PCHF exemption to compliance as their businesses grow. The proposed multi-state program includes partners from extension, food hubs/processing centers, and other partners within the food system to develop and implement a sustainable food safety training program customized to small and emerging food businesses (SEFB) that will help increase their knowledge in food safety and enable entrepreneurial success in the marketplace. To achieve this goal, the project will focus on three objectives:Conduct a needs assessment specific to the food safety educational and training opportunities necessary to support small and emerging food businesses (to meet new FSMA guidelines for processing systems).Develop a curriculum and online training tools, field a pilot test and evaluate the food safety educational program that addresses the needs specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enable FSMA compliance.Implement a sustainable food safety program specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enhance a food safety culture throughout the product development process.The collaborating team has a strong history of curriculum development success, has existing communications with their respective Northeastern Regional Center that will be further leveraged for maximum outreach capacity and has an established partnership with food hubs/food processing centers that will help enable small local processors become compliant with Food Safety Modernization (FSMA) regulations.

Animal Health Component

Research Effort Categories

Basic

Applied

Developmental

100%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
903	5010	3020	100%

Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
5010 - Food;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;

Keywords

food safety education

extension

food safety needs assessment

multi-state

product development

Goals / Objectives
The development of shared-use processing facilities and incubator kitchens has created opportunities for small and emerging food businesses yet these small and emerging food businesses are most challenged with navigating their way through regulation and food safety compliance while still delivering a safe, high quality food product that can be profitable and make a local economic impact. Therefore, to increase access and consumption of locally and regionally produced agricultural products, there is a strong need to provide a focused educational delivery of customized training to food entrepreneurs to understand critical food safety considerations from concept to commercialization. This project will increase market opportunities for locally produced food products by providing food safety training relevant to food product development Integrating the culture of food safety into the product development process from the beginning will streamline the process to help entrepreneurs launch local food products more successfully.This program will develop and implement a sustainable food safety-training program specifically to small entrepreneurial processors that are in need of technical assistance to develop local food products. Key concepts from the Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance (FSPCA) PCHF standardized curriculum, recognized by the FDA, will be modified to meet the current needs of the target audience and better prepare them for making the transition from FSMA PCHF exemption to compliance as their businesses grow. The proposed multi-state program includes partners from extension, food hubs/processing centers, and other partners within the food systemto develop and implement a sustainable food safety training program customized to small and emerging food businesses that will help increase their knowledge in food safety and enable entrepreneurial success in the marketplace. To achieve this goal, the project will focus three objectives: 1. Conduct a needs assessment specific to the food safety educational and training opportunities necessary to support SEFB. 2. Develop a curriculum and online training tools, field a pilot test and evaluate the food safety educational program that addresses the needs specific to SEFB that will enable FSMA compliance. 3. Implement a sustainable food safety program specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enhance a food safety culture throughout the product development process.The collaborating team has a strong history of curriculum development success and has an established partnership with food hubs/food processing centers that will help enable small local processors become compliant with Food Safety Modernization (FSMA) regulations.

Project Methods
Objective 1: Conduct a needs assessment specific to the food safety educational and training opportunities necessary to support SEFB.Activity 1.1: Conduct a needs assessment.Approach: The project directors at the Universities of Rhode Island and Massachusetts will coordinate the research survey. Survey development, review and administration will follow the successful protocol previously utilized by Pivarnik, Richard and research colleagues for mailed and online needs assessments for a variety of target audiences, as previously referenced. Potential survey respondents will be accessed through collaborative partnerships with regional stakeholders, including incubator kitchens, public health, processing centers and food hubs, and NECAFS.Objective 2: Develop a curriculum and online training tools, field a pilot test and evaluate the food safety educational program that addresses the needs specific to SEFB. Activity 2.1 Implement a communication plan to Northeast Regional CenterApproach: In order to make sure that we maintain active communication with the partners (extension, industry, workforce development, SEFB and other food system partners) and NECAFS we will have routine Advisory Board meetings (4 meetings/year) to discuss project updates, gain feedback and insight to support the project. This information will then be organized and communicated with routine reporting at NECAFS. The Project Director (PI-Kinchla) will be responsible for managing the communication plan to NECAFS as well as managing all technical and programmatic aspects of the grant and will ensure the communication plan is working accordingly. NECAFS is a Northeast regional center that consolidates food safety outreach and education efforts in a collaborative and consistent manner with a long-term goal of providing a sustainable, comprehensive food safety training, education and technical assistance program that assists small and mid-sized food producers and processors with FSMA compliance. PI-Kinchla is a co-director with a focus on food safety processing within the NECAFS team and is directly involved in the infrastructure development for this center.Activity 2.2 Develop a standard curriculum (based on needs assessment)Approach: The framework for this curriculum will use the original program developed by UMass and URI (outlined in Table 1) and make modifications based on the needs assessment survey. The core management team will modify all educational materials with support of the professional staff. In addition, the Advisory Board will review and provide feedback to the training and resource materials prior to implementation of the pilot testing program.Activity 2.3 Develop online tools for audience and trainersApproach: Leveraging the materials developed for the face-to-face curricula we will design an interactive, online tool that will be structured with a series of independent educational modules intended for adult learning and easy-access to additional resources. Results collected from the needs assessment (Activity 1.1) and pilot program evaluation (Activity 2.4) as well as input from the Advisory Board will help to improve the delivery mechanisms. We anticipate designing the online training materials to be engaging and user-friendly and include a diversified delivery method for optimal adult learning that will demonstrate immediate usefulness and direct application through "real world" case studies. The tools may include but are not limited to narrated PowerPoint slides, video demonstrations, and interactive quizzes.Activity 2.4 Pilot curriculumApproach: The pilot program will be fielded in 4-6 locations within the northeast to collect feedback that includes representation within the northeast region. Letters of support are included in this proposal to demonstrate that the partners support this effort and funding has been budgeted to support participation. Additionally, participants in the pilot phase of the project will evaluate the instructors, the training materials, and overall program to assist in modifications for future use. Assessments will be ascertained immediately following training and after 3-4 months.Activity 2.5 Evaluate Impact of the overall food safety programApproach: All outreach efforts will be quantitatively evaluated, and knowledge gained and the likelihood of change in production practices will be assessed. Evaluation tools will be developed to measure outreach effort and impact of extension programming.Objective 3: Implement a sustainable food safety program specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enhance a food safety culture throughout the product development process.Activity 3.1 Train-the-trainer curriculumApproach: We aim to recruit at least one representative within each northeast regional state to become a TTT for this program (budget has allocated travel reimbursement for these participants) with recruitment support from NECAFS. Target lead trainers will be qualified operational staff within regional food processing centers and food hubs. Knowledge gaps identified in the survey will be addressed via support materials and resources provided so that trainers can strengthen their knowledge base. It is important that information provided by trainers to their participants (SEFB) is accurate and appropriate.Activity 3.2 Disseminate a sustainable food safety curriculum for optimal outreach specific to small and emerging food businesses Approach: Implementing the TTT (Activity 3.1) and the online learning tools (Activity 2.3) are intended to help enable a sustainable program that can support the SEFB long after the completion of this grant funding. Establishing a standardized curriculum and executing a TTT with a target training audience of at least 1 representative from each state within the northeast region has been strategically designed to generate geographical technical support for SEFB. The core management leaders are committed to provide TTT for this program after the grant funding to help continue the program after the grant expires. In addition, the online learning opportunities provide user-friendly tools for users (SEFB) that are intended for on-demand, self-paced learning. Web-based tools will be housed within the NECAFS website to secure long-term regional access to all of the developed materials after the grant ends. Metrics and evaluation materials identified and executed in Activity 2.5 (Evaluate impacts) will be translated into a standardized evaluation tool for lead trainers to utilize pre- and post-programming to continuously monitor the overall program performance within the northeast through the support of NECAFS. Online participant utilization can/will be monitored using Google Analytics (or equivalent) as discussed in Activity 2.5.Activity 3.3 Focused outreach plans with targeted audienceApproach: The Co-PI's have already established partnerships within NECAFS, regional food processors, food hubs, departments of health, departments of agriculture and other partners within the food system. We have strategically included these partners to help with the development of this program to help cater to the needs of this community and build outreach capacity. Letters of support included in the proposal help to indicate the strong support with the identified partners and their willingness to help facilitate participation recruitment and outreach dissemination.Within these partnerships there are extended networks that can help to further penetrate to SEFB within the region. For example, the regional processing centers, such as FCCDC, CWK and H&M are part of a Community of Practice (COP) for Food Processing coordinated by the Farm to Institution organization. The COP enables us to access another entity that is in direct contact with our targeted small processor audience. Each partner entity involved in this program is willing and able to support these outreach efforts.

Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/21

Outputs
Target Audience:This project is specifically aimed at delivering food safety education and technical support to small and emerging food businesses that are working at regional food processing facilities. Changes/Problems:Due to the COVID19 pandemic, our program was significantly impacted in our overall outreach strategy. To overcome this, our team deployed real-time virtual trainings and produced an 8-module self-paced online training program. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The extension professional that worked on this project gained a variety of skills including program evaluation, curriculum development, adult education presenting skills, and data management. As a result, they have continued to pursue a role in adult education as an outreach educator in a sustainable foods program in West Virginia. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?In-person programming (virtual or live) has been adopted by several organizational partners. The online program is planned for roll out in Winter 2020 for small processors so that organizational partners that do not have the capacity to deliver the in-person training can provide a self-paced option. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? This project was able to complete the activities within each of the planned objectives. Due to the COVID19 pandemic, our programming deployment and outreach activities were significantly disrupted, however, our team pivoted to virtual program delivery that helped to make a more national reach. Additionally, we were able to build on online self-paced training that helps to further enhance our reach to small and emerging businesses. In summary, the project titled, " Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses: Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization " resulted in hosting 2: 12-hour in-person food safety pilot workshops (28 participants), 6: 14-hour virtual food safety workshops (115 participants), 1: 7 hour in-person train the trainer workshop (29 participants), and 2:7-hour virtual train the trainer workshops (29 participants), 2 peer-reviewed journal publications and 7 project presentations. These courses, hosted with partners from 8 states (NY, MA, RI, WV, VA, AR, GA, and IA) provided approximately 4,865 contact hours to small food processors and 1,218 contact hours to food safety educators across a minimum of 13 states (MA, RI, NY, CT, VT, NH, NJ, GA, AR, WV, VA, IN and CA) and 16 states (MA, RI, NY, CT, VT, ME, NH, NJ, MD, IA, NE, ID, GA, AR, WV, VA) respectively, which has helped to increase knowledge in food safety and entrepreneurial success in the marketplace. We have had positive feedback from the entrepreneurs that completed this course. Many of them have continued to participate in other food safety-related training that help to increase their food safety knowledge and improve practice. As an example of this impact, we have several testimonials presentedbelowprovided on some of our program evaluations. Testimonials: "Impressive job to all - excellent skills, knowledge & experience shared & executed very well. Best of luck!" In response to asking if they are considering hosting course - "Yes, hugely valuable info for someone lacking to start a business" "Great foundation for Preventive Controls or Human Food" "I love that you took the time to develop interactive activities that have not been used before" Below is a summary of all of the output deliverables that contributed to accomplishing our goals. FSOP Outputs Successful Food Product Development Courses Held 2 pilots (in person) NY (October 2019),9 participants RI (December 2019),19 participants PILOT TOTALS 2 courses, 28 participants 6 virtual courses UMass (July 2020),15 participants Cape Cod (November 2020),7 participants CISA (March 2021),35* participants WV (July/August 2021),7 participants FCCDC (August 2021),10 participants Purdue (August 2021),9 participants Arkansas/National Farmer's Union (August 2021),26 participants VIRTUAL COURSE TOTALS 6 courses, 115 participants Online self-paced course,Beta test- 11 participants completed the course Train the trainer courses In person Philadelphia, (February 2020),29 participants Virtual October 2020,13 participants April 2021, 16 participants TOTAL 3 courses, 58 participants Videos developed 5 videos developed- housed here. 3 on recipe to formula development Scale techniques and recipe consistency- 187 views Recipe formulation- 207 views Ingredient cost calculation- 5,950 views 2 on GMPS Good Manufacturing Practices: Personnel- 2,206 views Good Manufacturing Practices: Plant Design- 189 views Total video views (as of 11/04)- 8,739 Other outputs Presentations and publications - See Outputs section 1 Needs assessment 1 Shared use database 1 Training course database 8 educational tools created Curated resource list for small businesses Food Quality and Safety Case Studies Chocolate Chip Cookie Food Safety Plan- Teaching Example Food Product Estimated Startup Costs Hazard Analysis Virtual Exercise Worksheet Labeling Basics and Product Claims Virtual Exercise Worksheet Preventive Controls Scavenger Hunt Virtual Exercise Worksheet Recipe Conversion Exercise Worksheet

Publications

Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2021 Citation: Kinchla, A.J. Project update. Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses: Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization?. USDA NIFA FSOP - Food Safety Outreach Projects. Virtual, February 2021 Roundtable 2/4/21.
Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: von Achen, C., Richard, N., Kinchla, A.J. Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses: Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization?. Institute of Food Technology. (Virtual) July 2021.

Progress 09/01/19 to 08/31/20

Outputs
Target Audience:This project is specifically aimed at delivering food safety education and technical support to small and emerging food businesses that are working at regional food processing facilities. Changes/Problems:TheCOVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant disruption with our overall programming. We had successfully completed our TTT in February that resulted in 20+ trainers across the region, many of whom were prepared to roll out this program in the spring. Since all of our partners were no longer able to support face-to-face sessions, we needed make significant changes to our delivery. Furthermore, recruitment efforts plummeted, likely due to the many distractions caused by this unprecedented time. To overcome this challenge, we are preparing to host a virtual TTT session with partners to enable this program virtual training, continuing to work with our partners to promote this program and build and promote online resources that will provide a stronger technical support to small and emerging food businesses. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This summer we had an undergraduate student assist with our pivot to virtual trainings and enhancment of online resource tools. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results from the needs assessment and pilot programs wereshared through different channels including:the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety, the Advisory Board, IFT, and FSOP PI annual meeting (outlined in Products Section). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the universities facilities were closed down since March 2020. This impeded our original plans to deploy face-to-face training sessions across the region. Therefore, the team made a significant pivot to convert trainings into a virtual experience. The team requested and recieved a no-cost extension to help us achieve our final goals, which include: - Deliver a new virtual TTT to share the new approach to trainings. - Facilitate virtual training sessions across the region (and USA) to increase our reach with small and emerging businesses - Pilot an online training program that will enable participants to have a self-paced learning experience - Increase the availability online resources that will provide additional technical support to our targeted participants.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Current accomplishments include: 1. Conduct a needs assessment specific to the food safety educational and training opportunities necessary to support SEFB. • Results from this work have been summarized, reported to the advisory board, in conferences and FSOP project updates • Publication of manuscript as accepted July2020 in Food Protection Trends 2. Develop a curriculum and online training tools, field a pilot test and evaluate the food safety educational program that addresses the needs specific to SEFB that will enable FSMA compliance. • Curriculum was reviewed by Advisory Board • Pilot program deliveredOct & Dec • Program evaluation tools were deployed to assess the program 3. Implement a sustainable food safety program specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enhance a food safety culture throughout the product development process. • Train the Trainer session was complete Feb 2020

Publications

Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2020 Citation: Richard, N.; Von Achen,C. ; Pivarnik, L.; Kinchla, A.J. Integrating a Food Safety Culture From Concept to Commercialization for Small and Emerging Food Businesses. Institute of Food Technologists, Annual Meeting - SHIFT20. Published Jul 03, 2020. https://shift20.iftevent.org/videos/26684_55235_21479_zoom_1.
Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Richard, N.; Von Achen,C. ; Pivarnik, L.; Kinchla, A.J. Building and Launching a Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization. Published Jul 03, 2020. https://shift20.iftevent.org/videos/26684_55235_21479_zoom_1.
Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Von Achen,C. ; Richard, N.; Pivarnik, L.; Kinchla, A.J. Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization. Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety, Philadelphia, PA.February, 2020.
Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Von Achen,C. ; Richard, N.; Pivarnik, L.; Kinchla, A.J. Building and Launching a Food Safety Management Training for Small and Emerging Food Businesses: Integrating a Food Safety Culture from Concept to Commercialization. NIFA FSOP PI Virtual Meeting, August, 2020.
Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2020 Citation: Richard, N.; Von Achen,C. ; Pivarnik, L.; Kinchla, A.J. Knowledge, attitudes, and implementation of food safety practices among small food businesses operating at shared-use kitchens.Food Protection Trends. Accepted. FPT-20-018

Progress 09/01/18 to 08/31/19

Outputs
Target Audience:This project is specifically aimed at delivering food safety education and technical support to small and emerging food businesses that are working at regional food processing facilities. Changes/Problems:One challenge we had this year was recruiting participants to complete the needs assesssment. We originally fielded this survey using an online platform. To increase participation, we needed to increase our dissemination through networks within the Advisory Board, extended the survey response date and added a mail in survey. Due to the additional efforts, we were able to increase our responses that helped with the statistical validity of our data. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary needs assessment data has been shared with the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety, the Advisory Board and we are currently preparing a manuscript for publication (target for completion 2021). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Pilot the newly designed curriculum at different locations within the Northeast Publish the research results from the needs assessment Host train-the-trainer sessions in 2021 Design and launch a web-based training Continue to host Advisory Board meetings Share results of this program at different conferences. Reportprogram evaluations

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Current accomplishments include: 1. Conduct a needs assessment specific to the food safety educational and training opportunities necessary to support SEFB. The needs assessment was designed, disseminated and the results have been received. Raw data has been sorted and currently completing the data analysis. 2. Develop a curriculum and online training tools, field a pilot test and evaluate the food safety educational program that addresses the needs specific to SEFB that will enable FSMA compliance. Curriculum has been developed Pilot program dates have been set for fall and winter Program evaluation tools have been designed 3. Implement a sustainable food safety program specific to small and emerging food businesses that will enhance a food safety culture throughout the product development process. Train the Trainer sessions are scheduled for 2021

Publications

Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/18

Outputs
Target Audience:This project is specifically aimed at delivering food safety education and technical support to small and emerging food businesses that are working at regional food processing facilities. Changes/Problems:The FSOP wasawarded in Sept2017 andthe administering of funds was completed November 2017 due to a delay in funding. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Key Milestones aimed at being completed over the next reporting cycle include: - Survey analysis - Curriculum development - Piloting the developed curriculum with SEFBat different regional food processing facilties within the northeast.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? - The FSOP wasawarded in Sept2017 andthe administering of funds was completed November 2017. Additional team personal were hired within the first 6 months of funding to provide administrative support for the needs assessment and curriculum development. - An advisory boardthat includespartners fromextension, industry, workforce development, and small and emerging food businessesand NECAFS has been confirmed. TheAdvisory Board meets routinely for project updates, gain feedback and insight to support the project as planned. - Establisheda database/networkfor the distribution of the needs assessment. The database is of regional food processing centers within the northeast that support small and emerging food businesses. Within the past 6 months we have grown the network to over 100 identified facilities within the northeast. - The PI team meets consistently (at least monthly via face-to-face or web-based)to discuss and report on project activities. As such, the team utilizes a Box shared-use filing system as proposed in the Data Management Plan. - The needs assessment survey has been designed, drafted and reviewed with experts in the field. The administering of the survey will be deployed to stakeholders by Sept 2018 as planned

Publications