Recipient Organization
UNIV OF HAWAII
3190 MAILE WAY
HONOLULU,HI 96822
Performing Department
Hawaii County
Non Technical Summary
The project entitled "Engaging Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Grower Educational Needs for Safe Fruit & Vegetable Production in HI & CA" aims to provide Food Safety Modernization Act - Produce Safety Rule (FSMA-PSR) resources to socially-disadvantaged AAPI fruit and vegetable growers in Hawaii and California. Nationally, AAPI growers constitute 28,000 growers, earning $7.5 billion in annual produce sales, but they can have difficulty in accessing critical food safety information like FSMA-PSR due to limited English proficiency. The project team proposes to 1) Translate the WIFSS supplementary FSMA-PSR e-course and associated resources into Ilocano and Mandarin for AAPI growers in Hawaii and California, 2) Identify and address gaps in e-course curricula and content by obtaining feedback from stakeholders, 3) Migrate the FSMA-PSR e-course and resources to a dedicated website that can support demand and user traffic, and 4) Conduct FSMA-PSR outreach to AAPI growers and stakeholders, which includes PSA Grower Trainings and workshops showcasing the newly translated e-course website and materials. The team will collaborate with national partners including the Produce Safety Alliance and the Western Region Center to Enhance Food Safety to gather feedback and disseminate project outcomes to agricultural stakeholders.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
Our goal is to support AAPI growers in successful on-farm implementation of produce safety practices and compliance with the Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act - Produce Safety Rule (FSMA-PSR) bycreatinga more culturally appropriate educational tool for Asian American and Pacific Islander fresh fruit and vegetable growers in HI and CA to utilize.
Project Methods
1. Translate the English FSMA-PSR supplemental online course and associated resources into Ilocano and Mandarin. a. UCD WIFSS will assemble content from their FSMA-PSR Program. Modules include educational content for FSMA-PSR subparts and examples of on-farm scenarios for: 1) agricultural water 2) animal intrusions 3) health and hygiene 4) harvesting procedures 5) worker training 6) recordkeeping for compliance.b. Review and select existing food safety outreach materials from UHM-CTAHR and UC Cooperative Extension/outreach programs for translation and incorporation into course content and as supplemental resources.c. Solicit translation and interpretation services needed to translate the online course modules and video into Ilocano and Mandarin. Obtain Ilocano and Mandarin interpreter services needed for in-person focus groups.d. Solicit review and back-translation of the translated Ilocano and Mandarin online courses from bilingual professional peers for correctness, comprehension and incorporate suggestions.2. Identify gaps in online course curricula and content by obtaining stakeholder focus groups' feedback incorporating input to best address the needs of AAPI growers in understanding and implementing FSMA-PSR in Hawai'i and California. a. Conduct multi-state focus groups via Zoom for Ilocano and Mandarin speaking HI and CA growers, to identify course curricula and content gaps based on AAPI specific needs for understanding and implementing the FSMA-PSR.b. Compile feedback from focus groups to revise course content and educational materials as needed. Feedback could include additional information on: i. Determining "covered" vs "exempt" farm statusii. Post-harvest handlingiii. Co-mingling from different farm sites by same grower(s)c. The WIFSS team will travel to Hawai'i to work with UHM-CTAHR team on capturing Hawai'i relevant video and imagery for online courses, cross training the Hawai'i team in introductory level videography and photography, and conducting site visits to better understand challenges AAPI growers encounter in produce production and implementation of FSMA-PSR. WIFSS and UHM-CTAHR will observe and collect imagery and videos for the online course addressing food safety concerns of Hawai'i's growers.3. Migrate the FSMA-PSR online course and resources to a dedicated website that can support demand and user-traffic. a. Oversee migration of the current FSMA-PSR course to a dedicated server and user-friendly website that guides users through the online course and resources.b. Collaborate with UHM-CTAHR and UCCE-UAFSP teams on instructional design, graphic and web design to ensure the user interface and website layout are easy to use for learners and accessible in multiple languages.c. Beta test website functionality in coordination with Objective 2a peer-review and focus group sessions. Gain feedback on website-functionality for asynchronous learning, and employee web-based training for produce safety compliance.d. Coordinate launch of website to outreach activities described in Objective 4, promoting and supporting the work of food safety educators and AAPI fruit and vegetable growers' needs.e. Generate reporting metrics on the website's functionality as an Online Learning Center for on-farm implementation of FSMA-PSR and share reports with WRCEFS and USDA FSOP.4. Conduct FSMA-PSR outreach to AAPI growers and stakeholders in Hawai'i and California furthering UHM-CTAHR, WIFSS, and UCCE-UAFSPs' multi-county, statewide, and multi-state food safety education and outreach programs through sharing developed translated materials and resources that are consistent with FSMA guidelines.a. Collaborate with WRCEFS and PSA on plans to disseminate the online courses and resources to national peers and stakeholders, including those working with AAPI growers.b. Host webinars to introduce the translated courses and additional resources. UCCE-UAFSP, WIFSS, and UHM-CTAHR will leverage its partnerships with non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations, cooperative extension, food hubs, farm cooperatives, farmers' market organizations, who typically work with AAPI fruit and vegetable growers. i. As part of the webinars, we will request attendees complete pre- and post- session evaluative assessment surveys measuring utility and usefulness of the online course and outcomes-data will be shared with the WRCEFS.c. Conduct up to 4 Produce Safety Alliance Grower Trainings introducing the online course(s) and supplemental resources. UHM-CTAHR will work with UCCE-UAFSP and partner agencies to provide PSA Grower Training to both Hawai'i and California growers including AAPI growers.