US: PMA provides food safety resources

With the passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) in 2011, new food safety regulations mandated by the government are an important concern for the produce industry. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will release proposed rules on produce production, food safety plans, and imports in the coming weeks.

To ensure fact is separated from fiction and to ensure proper understanding of what these proposed rules mean to the industry, the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) is providing valuable resources that ensure industry stakeholders can influence and shape the final regulations.

In preparation for the upcoming comment period and give context to what produce businesses can do now, PMA is offering three ways for its members and stakeholders to gain more information and insight:

The ability to sign up for FSMA updates and notifications of educational sessions, including a free webinar, to help organizations understand what is included in the proposed rules and how they will affect operations; a new FSMA community on PMA Xchange to post questions and engage with PMA staff experts and members. Discussions also will be updated on PMA’s Facebook page and through Twitter using hashtags: #FSMA and #freshproduce and an updated FSMA resource page with full details on the legislation and other useful resources, including how organizations will be able to provide comments on the proposed rules once they are published.

For more information:
Glenn Boyet
gboyet@pma.com