FDA Produce Safety Rule Water Summit

Water used during the production of fruits and vegetables represents a potential pathway for contamination with human pathogens. In the Food Safety Modernization Act’s (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule, microbial quality standards were established for agricultural water that comes in contact with produce to reduce risks associated with agricultural water use. FDA received feedback with concerns about the complexity of the regulations and difficulty of implementation.

The two-day Water Summit is an engagement opportunity for growers, regulatory personal, industry representatives, educators, and researchers to increase understanding and work collaboratively to develop ideas that support risk reduction. This Water Summit will include informational presentations and breakout discussions. Participants will explore challenges related to the requirements of Subpart E – Agricultural Water and discuss potential solutions that are workable while still protecting public health.
The Water Summit is taking place in Cincinnati, OH with remote location sites to allow people to participate in real-time in their home state. The Washington State Department of Agriculture, Washington State University and Washington Tree Fruit Association are hosting remote sites in Yakima and Mt. Vernon. The meeting will be streamed live to each remote location where participants will also conduct breakout groups at the same time as the Cincinnati summit. Information from each remote group will be fed into the Cincinnati meeting so that their feedback can be integrated into the meeting. More information about here.