In a news release from the Colorado Department of Agriculture, farm operators of any size are invited to attend a Produce Safety Rule Agricultural Water Webinar, March 20 at 11:30 a.m., MT. Registration is available at ag.colorado.gov/psr.
The webinar comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Produce Safety Rule ended for those operators who use water during or after produce harvest. CDA staff uses subpart E of the Produce Safety Rule which sets standards for how to test, treat and monitor water used during harvest and post-harvest. This includes activities like harvesting, packing, holding and transporting the produce.
According to the release, FDA allowed enforcement discretion until Jan. 26, 2023, when a phased-in approach to enforcement began. Starting in 2024, both large and small farms must comply with the ag water portion of the Produce Safety Rule. This means during the 2024 growing season, CDA inspectors will take an “educate while we regulate” approach.
Program staff will describe what an inspection would look like under the regulations and the harvest and post-harvest water requirements they would need to comply with.
All farms, even those under enforcement discretion, are welcome to join the webinar to get an idea of what it means to be compliant and what records an inspector would ask for.
