The “Food Safety Education and Planning for Agritourism” webinar will begin at 12:00 p.m. EST. While you wait, use the “sparkler ” tool on the left of this slide to put a mark on the map to show where you are. 1

Food Safety Education and Planning for Agritourism Ben Amsden, Plymouth State University Lisa Chase and Londa Nwadike, UVM Extension December 14, 2011 This material is based upon work supported in part by USDA/NIFA under Award Number

Choose A, B, C or D A. Farmer B. Extension educator, outreach C. Policy or advocacy D. Other

Choose A, B, C or D A. U-pick B. Prepared Food C. CSA D. Other

If there is food, folks will come What is risk? –Simple and complex definitions Why manage risk? –Protecting customer health –Protecting your business

The tools of risk management Tool #1: The help and advice of experts Tool #2: A support network of stakeholders Tool #3: A personalized risk management plan

Managing risk: One size can’t fit all Why isn’t liability insurance enough? What types of insurance do are out there? What about working with others? What if I am doing something unusual? What are the emerging issues in risk management?

Do I need to think about risk? Do you host activities that involves food and/or alcohol? Are you familiar with best practices in food safety? Can you train employees to follow these practices? Can you ensure that everyone follows best practices? If a customer has a bad experience, how will you handle it?

Outline Food contamination –How it happens Impact of food borne illness Who needs to be concerned with food safety? Risk-based food safety systems General food safety principles

Food contamination Types Microbial: bacterial, viral, parasites –disease-causing: pathogens Chemical: heavy metals, natural toxins, pesticides Physical: wood, stones, glass, etc

How do contaminants get in? Many foodborne microbes present in intestine of healthy food animals –Meat and poultry can be contaminated in slaughter Produce: washed or irrigated with contaminated water, other conditions Processed food: cross contamination, infected humans

Results of food contamination Symptoms of foodborne illness (FBI) –Contaminant enters body through GI tract, so first symptoms usually there Nausea, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, etc FBI outbreaks –More than 250 foodborne diseases described –Examples: Listeria in cantaloupe; E.coli in sprouts, strawberries, spinach; Salmonella in peanut butter, raw milk cheese, etc

What is impact of FBI? Difficult to fully determine –Health effects ($9 billion in health care costs) –Loss of markets requiring assurance of safe food –Reduced shelf life of foods ***Loss of consumer confidence –Under-reporting of FBI, little active surveillance –Source of disease difficult: may be spread through food, drinking water, swim water, personal contact

How much FBI occurs? Yearly in US –48 million illnesses (1 in 6 people) –128,000 hospitalizations –3,000 deaths Especially concerned about young, old, pregnant, sick

Who should be concerned? –Everyone!! On-farm meal providers Restaurants U-pick operations CSAs Market vendors Other agri-tourism operations Food processors Food transporters Consumers

Risk-based food safety Risk: combination of the probability that a particular outcome will occur and the severity of the harm involved –Use risk-based system to control risk factors that may cause disease –Examples: HACCP, GAPs –These help decrease FBI Provide assurance to customers of food safety Can also be a management tool

General FS principles -Must ensure that premises, equipment, transport and employees do not contribute to or become food safety hazards -Need the following in place: -Sanitation -Pest control -Personal practices/ hygiene -Gloves, handwashing, hygienic clothing -(GHPs, GMPs, SSOPs)

Upcoming Food Safety events Food Safety for Food Processors –Dec 15, Brattleboro, VT NOFA Direct Marketing Conference –Jan 8, 2012, S. Royalton, VT Maple food safety- Maple conferences in Jan VT Food Safety Summit- March 22, 2012 Food safety, HACCP for meat processors

Food Safety publications Farmers Market Vendor Series –General Food Safety Practices, Samples, Selling Fresh ProduceGeneral Food Safety Practices, Samples, Selling Fresh Produce –Selling Meat, Eggs and Dairy ProductsSelling Meat, Eggs and Dairy Products –Selling Prepared Foods and Baked GoodsSelling Prepared Foods and Baked Goods Food Safety Requirements for VT Food Processors Key Vermont Slaughter Inspection and Licensing Requirements for Meat ProducersKey Vermont Slaughter Inspection and Licensing Requirements for Meat Producers VT Meat Labeling and Packaging Requirements Food Distributors Operating in Vermont Food Safety After Floods

Resources Webpage with food safety fact sheets and links specifically for agritourismwww.uvm.edu/tourismresearch/agritourism Webpage for food safety including upcoming eventswww.uvm.edu/extension/food Want to talk with a real person about food safety? Contact Londa Nwadike at ext. 216 or