For small - scale farmers wanting to show they ’re serious about food safety , theGood Agricultural Practices certificationis accepted diligence - wide . GAP is USDA ’s voluntary programme to assess crusade in minimise the risk of microbial taint of produce and food item . Every Fannie Merritt Farmer should take food safety seriously and have a food - safety plan in place , regardless of whether he is seeking GAP certificate .
Many GAP guidelines are common - sense practices , yet some are well overlooked . Here are seven things you’re able to implement in your green goods - processing barn , in particular , to construct your food - base hit design and advance your GAP audit score .
1. Have a restroom with toilet paper, a sink, soap and disposable towels.
Chris Blanchard , owner of Flying Rutabaga Works and Rock Spring Farm in Decorah , Iowa , says there are three keys of food safety :
A primary means of achieving these objectives is by washing hands . Blanchard says you do n’t necessarily need hot piddle or antibacterial grievous bodily harm , but you do need a dedicated swallow hole for hand washing — ideally with hands - free grip — that drains away from food - handling and substructure - traffic areas .
Post hand - wash protocols in the bathroom and at the deal - washables cesspit . grant to the Food and Drug Administration ’s “ Guide to downplay Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and veggie , ” the importance of food for thought workers understanding and practicing proper hygienics can not be overemphasized . Workers can unintentionally contaminate refreshful produce , water supply and other actor , and transmit foodborne illness if they do not understand and follow basic hygienical principle .
Do not dry out your workforce on cloth / reusable towels — and especially not on your pestiferous jeans — as these run to carry more germ than what you washed away . Let your deal air - wry or use paper towels . If the idea of using theme towels makes your sustainable - live side anxious , compost after use .
Keep the restroom clean and well - stocked .
2. Keep a first-aid kit.
Prompt intervention of cuts , abrasions and other injury is an obvious sound practice for your own wellness , and it scale down the likeliness of produce taint .
Post health insurance for all to read . These should let in guidelines for not working when sick , seeking immediate first care for injuries , and reporting illnesses and harm .
3. Provide a separate break area.
Your own intellectual nourishment — as in the food you ’re eating — should remain separate from the food you ’re selling . denominate an area for eating and fume away from the processing surface area , and emphasize washing hands before returning to work with the produce .
4. Secure harvesting equipment.
Take measures to prevent critter from accessing your harvesting crates , knives and mitt . outside crateful repositing might sound like a good idea if you ’re short on covered space , but passing birds and wildlife can contaminate surface before the garden truck even comes in contact with the equipment .
Do n’t use harvesting equipment for anything other than produce , and point disjoined container for washed and plebeian garden truck .
Keep a unconstipated schedule for sanitizing harvesting equipment and document it . lap off seeable soil after each usage . Think about informality of sanitization when choosing your harvesting equipment , too : moldable crate are well-fixed to clean ; wooden crates are not .
5. Reduce physical contaminants.
Physical pollution is a danger in processing barns , too , and often come from above . back light bulbs and blind window so tattered glass can not shine onto your green goods . Shield simple machine parts so grease , crude or metal shards ca n’t accidentally fall into processing areas . Have recuperation procedures in position in case these accidents hap .
6. Exclude pests from the barn.
Insects , birds and gnawer ascertain their direction into processing areas under eaves and through open door and window . You do n’t involve to close everything up closely , but secure these field with bird veiling , screen or clear - plastic strip doors .
Repair strong-arm damage to the barn , such as cracks or cranny in the trading floor or walls , that would allow pestilence to exceed through .
7. Clean up.
sanitise all areas of the barn and sweep up regularly . Keep in mind that brick , dirt and crushed rock floors and brick and wood walls are not sanitizable — this should be taken into account when applying for GAP certification .
Floor drains should be unobstructed ; trash should be break up up ; items not related to harvesting and processing should not be stored in the processing area ; and object above the processing area — pipes , light fix , buff and duct — should be kept clean .
These processing - barn guidelines are just some of the ideas you should put through to boost your GAP compliance and make your intellectual nourishment - handling practices safe . Your processing b and your produce will be good for it .
