Governor Gavin Newsom today announced new initiatives to help Californians put healthy food on the table while also supporting the farm industry, which has been devastated by COVID-19. The Governor unveiled $3.64 million in new funding to expand the state’s Farm to Family program, including $2.86 million from the USDA and $775,000 committed by philanthropy to jumpstart a $15 million campaign …

Answering the nation’s call for enhanced food safety measures, Western Growers (WG) has developed a website to facilitate changes to the Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (LGMA)-approved Leafy Green Food Safety Guidelines: www.leafygreenguidance.com. The interactive website now easily allows the public to participate in routine discussions and process amendments that will ensure continuous improvement of the leafy green food safety preventive …

(Washington, D.C., April 24, 2020) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced California and Connecticut have been approved to operate Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT), a new program authorized by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), signed by President Trump, which provides assistance to families of children eligible for free or reduced-price meals dealing with school closures. …

The North American Meat Institute (Meat Institute) today said meat and poultry producers are leaning in to continue efforts to meet the global demand for meat under difficult circumstances. “As the Coronavirus began to spread overseas, our members acted to protect their employees and develop contingency plans to ensure plants could still provide food for families around the world,” said …

In the next few weeks, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will survey fruit growers in 12 states, including California, for its biennial Fruit Chemical Use Survey. Growers across the nation will provide information on bearing acreage, pest management practices, fertilizer types, and application rates for more than 21 fruit crops. “Growers benefit from providing this …

Did you know that in 2018 there were about 6000 SQF audits globally? When I read that, I was struck by how many sites are audited to the standard. You may be aware that in 2018 the new edition 8 of SQF went into effect, which affected all of those sites worldwide.  Although the standard remained largely the same in …

While every food manufacturing site, big or small, needs to develop strong food safety systems, not every site is ready to meet the full requirements of a GFSI certification audit. Recognizing this, BRC has developed the START! Program in order to “recognize and encourage the development of food safety systems in small sites”. What is the START! Program? BRC START! Is third-party food …

The impact of an E. coli outbreak is far-reaching. It spreads through the entire supply chain, leaving consumers, farmers, and retailers in a bind. Losing 45% of your sales overnight is a massive loss to any industry. This is what happened in 2018 regarding the E. coli outbreaks in romaine. Struggling to boost consumer confidence to have another outbreak and lose another …