Tool Debuted by Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan
The On-Farm Food Safety Project was officially unveiled on December 15, 2011 at U.S. Department of Agriculture headquarters by Jim Slama, President of FamilyFarmed.org, high profile food and agriculture organizations, and Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture. This broad partnership of stakeholders will help release the new online tool, available free to farmers, and demonstrate its ability to mitigate farm-based food safety risks.
The tool is voluntary and enables produce growers to create customized food safety plans, and thus, adopt and document best practices in food safety. It is the first of its kind and was developed by the nonprofit FamilyFarmed.org with lead funding from the USDA Risk Management Agency. A broad coalition of farm and produce industry partners helped create the program, which is available at www.onfarmfoodsafety.org.
In an era of growing concern about food safety, farmers of all sizes have sought ways to build effective and manageable food safety programs in an economical manner. This tool will help produce growers improve their food safety protocols by helping them assess risks specific to their farms and suggesting risk-specific mitigations.
“USDA believes that a strong farm safety net-including effective, market-based risk solutions for producers of all variety and size-is crucial to sustain the vitality of American agriculture,” said Merrigan. “Effectively managing risk is important to all producers, and having an acceptable food safety program is in the best interest of consumers, buyers, and the farmers themselves. USDA is proud to have worked with private, public and nonprofit partners to introduce this free tool to farmers seeking to gain certification as a Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) producer.”
