News Release Distributed 10/14/14

BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU AgCenter will hold five meetings in November and December to inform agricultural producers about proposed Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) rules.The meetings will be conducted by AgCenter extension food safety specialist Achyut Adhikari, pecan specialist Charlie Graham and horticulture specialist Kiki Fontenot.

Congress passed FSMA in 2010 to overhaul decades-old food safety regulations. The Food and Drug Administration is still developing rules to enforce the law.

FSMA will require farmers and food processors to take more steps to prevent contamination and to keep more detailed documentation on their practices. Several aspects of agriculture, including water and soil quality, workers’ hygiene, wild animal control and equipment storage, will be affected.

The meetings will focus on the Proposed Rule for Produce Safety, which the FDA recently revised based on numerous public comments, Adhikari said. Comments on the updated proposed rule can be submitted to the FDA until Dec. 15.

All of the meetings will run from 9 a.m. to noon. Dates and locations are as follows:

– Nov. 17, Red River Research Station, 262 Research Station Drive, off U.S. Highway 71 south of Bossier City.

– Nov. 18, DeWitt Livestock Show Facility, 100 Gregg Marshall Drive, off U.S. Highway 71 south of Alexandria.

– Nov. 19, Tom H. Scott Extension and Education Center, 212A Macon Ridge Road, off La. Highway 15 south of Winnsboro.

– Nov. 20, Hammond Research Station, 21549 Old Covington Highway, La. Highway 1067, east of Hammond.

– Dec. 1, Rice Research Station, 1373 Caffey Road, off U.S. Highway 90, Rayne.

For more information or to RSVP, contact Adhikari by email or call Amy Blanchard at 225-578-2222.

Olivia McClure