Fresh-cut Fundamentals
March 5, 2009
Yuma, Arizona

A one-day training event for operations, quality assurance, manufacturing and maintenance managers, as well as anyone interested in assuring the quality of fresh-cut produce.

When: March 5, 2009, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Where: Holiday Inn—Yuma
1901 E. 18th Street Yuma, AZ 95365
928-782-9300

Cost: $350.00 Includes program notebook, and morning and afternoon refreshments as well as lunch.

Description: Fresh-cut Fundamentals is an intensive one-day training program designed for persons employed in the fresh-cut produce industry, from small local and regional produce processors to large businesses with nationwide distribution. The program, designed and delivered by produce technical experts from three nationally recognized Universities strives to inform industry professionals working in the fresh-cut produce industry about the underlying principles that govern fresh-cut produce quality while providing practical tools for application in the processing plant. The training is geared to adult learners being highly interactive and hands-on, with attendees sharing information and working in small groups throughout the day.

Topics:

• Product Receiving Best Practices
• Quality Control for Raw & Finished Products
• Receiving Break Out Session
• Fresh-cut Microbiology & Shelf-life
• Fundamentals of Modified Atmosphere Packaging
• Finished & Retained Product Testing
• Sensory Analysis Break Out Session
• Fundamentals of Process Control
• Problem Diagnosis & Problem Solving

Instructors:

	Marita Cantwell, UC Davis Dr. Cantwell is a Cooperative Extension Specialist in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis, where for the last 20 years she has been conducting a research and education program on postharvest physiology and handling of vegetables for the California horticulture industry. Marita Cantwell is one of the organizers and lead instructors for the two-week Postharvest Technology Short Course held each June at UC Davis, and for the 3- day Fresh-cut Workshop held each September. Her applied research includes studies on the effect of preharvest factors on postharvest quality and composition, the physiology and handling of specialty vegetables and melons, alternatives to postharvest fungicides and fumigants, and fresh-cut vegetable products. She is a member of the American and the International Societies for Horticultural Science (ASHS, ISHS), Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), United Fresh Produce Association (UFPA), and the Produce Marketing Association (PMA).
	Jim Gorny, UC Davis Dr. Gorny currently serves as executive director of the Postharvest Technology Research and Information Center. He leads the center’s internationally recognized efforts in providing technical information and knowledge to all sectors of the postharvest value chain regarding means of maintaining the quality, safety and marketability of fresh fruits, vegetables and ornamentals. Dr. Gorny also has expertise in produce food-safety regulatory policy and served as editor-in-chief of numerous produce food safety-guidance documents currently in use by the industry today. He works directly academic and various facets of the produce industry to assist them in improving postharvest handling practices throughout the distribution chain. Prior to joining the Postharvest Center at UC Davis, Dr. Gorny served for seven years as Senior Vice President of Food Safety & Technology for the United Fresh Produce Association / International Fresh-cut Produce Association which merged in 2006. Dr. Gorny received his Ph.D. in plant biology from the University of California at Davis in 1995, and his B.S. and M.S. degrees in food science from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.
	Jorge M. Fonseca, University of Arizona Dr. Jorge Fonseca currently serves as vegetable and postharvest specialist for The University of Arizona with an office at the Yuma Agricultural Center where he leads the state’s vegetable physiology, safety, and quality research and extension program. He is an adjunct faculty at the Department of Plant Sciences and the Department of Arid Lands Studies. Dr. Fonseca received his Ph.D. in food technology from Clemson University, South Carolina, a M.Sc. in horticulture also from Clemson, Master in business administration from the University of Costa Rica and the National University of San Diego, CA, and his B.S. in plant sciences from the University of Costa Rica. He is the author and co-author of over 130 scientific and technical publications pertaining to the quality and safety of fresh produce.
	Bill Hurst, University of Georgia Dr. William C. (Bill) Hurst is a professor in the Food Science and Technology Department at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia USA. Dr. Hurst is an accredited HACCP instructor and specializes in setting up educational food safety programs for various food commodity groups. Beginning in 1999, he started the first internationally-attended HACCP certification short course for the fresh-cut produce industry and in 2001 held the first GAPS (Good Agricultural Practices) workshop for growers and packers of the fresh produce industry. In 1998, Dr. Hurst was honored for his 20+ years work with the Southeastern Food Processors Association (SFPA) by having an annual undergraduate Food Science scholarship awarded in his name. In 2000, he received the prestigious Technical Award from the International Fresh-Cut Produce Association (now United Fresh Produce Association) for his long service to this industry. Dr. Hurst received the 2004 D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in Extension, the highest award granted to faculty in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the University of Georgia.
	Jim Thompson, UC Davis Jim Thompson is an Extension Engineer with the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at UC Davis. He has over 32 years of service with UC Davis and in addition to his departmental and extension roles, he also serves as faculty director of the Postharvest Technology Research and Information Center, and Co-Director Agricultural Track of the Energy Efficiency Center. Jim Thompson’s program centers around the engineering aspects of postharvest handling of fruits, vegetables, flowers, grains and nuts. Specific areas of work are; design of equipment for initial cooling. cold storage facilities, fruit ripening rooms, and drying equipment, development of sensors for determining product quality, development of improved packaging for perishables, and improving refrigerated transport systems. Mr. Thompson received his B.S. and M.S. in Agricultural Engineering from the University of California, Davis.

Enrolling is Easy!

Secure On-Line Registration. Link to our secure registration site and pay using your credit card.

Mail or Fax. Print the flyer (a PDF document), and fax or mail it to us with your payment information.

Postharvest Technology Research & Information Center
Dept. of Plant Sciences - MS2
UC Davis
One Shields Avenue
Davis, CA 95616

Fax: (530) 754-4326

Phone. Call us at (530) 752-6941 with your registration information. Be sure to have your credit card handy.

*No refunds will be issued for cancellations. However, you may transfer your registration.