State Officials Discuss Food Safety At Plymouth Meeting Farm

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA — Local legislators appeared at a Plymouth Meeting farm Wednesday alongside state agriculture officials and area farming representatives to discuss a public-private partnership to help keep Pennsylvania food healthy for consumers.

Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding joined State Sen. Amanda Capelletti, D-17, State Rep. Mary Jo Daley, D-148, and agriculture industry stakeholders during an appearance at Maple Acres Farm Market to highlight how the Agriculture Department’s Bureau of Food Safety works with farmers across the commonwealth to “implement science-based practices that keep food safe from farm to fork for human consumption,” according to a news release.

“Fresh produce is an important part of a healthy diet,” Redding said in a statement. “But without farmers taking care on the farm to implement science-based controls to ensure the safety of produce, consumers are at risk for contracting foodborne illness.

“Through voluntary on-farm readiness reviews with our Bureau of Food Safety, Pennsylvania’s farmers are doing their part, taking proactive initiative, to ensure the health and safety of their product for Pennsylvanians,” he continued.

Representatives with the Pennsylvania Farmers Union also attended the press briefing, with Heidi Secord, president of the union, saying in a statement that the group works hard to demystify the On-Farm Readiness Review process for Pennsylvania farmers and educate the entire farming industry.

“We want all farmers to succeed in providing safe food to consumers,” Secord stated.

According to the state Agriculture Department, On-Farm Readiness Reviews are offered to farmers as a way to prepare for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s full implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act's Produce Safety Rule.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control says that about 48 million people become sick each year because of foodborne illnesses.

“Foodborne illness is a significant public health burden that is largely preventable,” reads a statement from the Pennsylvania Agriculture Department. “Pennsylvania farmers do their part to prevent these outbreaks by implementing food safety practices on the farm.”

The department says it coordinates with the Pennsylvania Farmers Union to educate famers on their responsibilities and the requirements of the Produce Safety Rule of the FSMA, by offering these free and voluntary readiness reviews to evaluate farming practices and to improve food safety procedures for consumers.

Wednesday's event coincided with National Farmers Market Week, which occurs during the first week in August. Pennsylvania is home to more than 1,000 farmers markets, according to the Agriculture Department.

Maple Acres Farm in Plymouth Meeting, where Wednesday’s event took place, is one of nearly 500 farms that have taken advantage of the free on-farm reviews, the Agriculture Department stated.

Maple Acres also accepts Pennsylvania Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers that enable low-income families and senior citizens to purchase fresh and safe local produce.

“I’m grateful for Pennsylvania’s farmers and farmers markets that work hard every day to contribute to a safe, reliable, local food supply,” Redding, the Agriculture Secretary, said in his statement. “They’re simultaneously strengthening the economy, improving the health of our citizens and growing the entrepreneurial spirit of our commonwealth.”