Resources

Newsletter

Our newsletter is sent at the end of every month.  It included new resources, upcoming events, and announcements about NCR meetings.  Sign up here, if you'd like to join our mailing list (or use the same link to remove your email from the list).  We sent approximately three emails per month.

Resources Developed by NCR FSMA

Employee/Volunteer Training Guides

• Pre-Harvest, Harvest, and Post-Harvest Training Guides for employees and volunteers.  You can find versions as a Powerpoint, PDF, or Publisher file.  You can adapt the Powerpoints and Publisher files for your own farm.

Scenario Discussions

• Tomato and Salsa Small Group Discussions.  This includes a short video, maps of the farm, cleaning logs and records from the farm, and discussion questions.

Fact Sheets

• FSMA Compliant On-Farm Thermophilic Composting: A Safe Way to Enrich the Soil
• Bodily Fluid Clean Up on the Farm
• Domesticated Animals Factsheet- FSMA Produce Safety Rule 
• Farm Stands and U-Pick Produce Operations Safety Best Practices
• Federal and State Regulations on Selling Fermented Foods 
• Federal and State Regulations on Selling Frozen and Dehydrated Foods 
• Federal and State Regulations on Selling Jams and Jellies 
• FSMA Produce Rule Summary for Midwest Orchards 
• Federal and State Regulations on Selling Pickled Vegetables 
• FSMA Produce Safety Rule: Dealing with Wildlife 
• Ensuring Food Safety: Wineries
• Ensuring Food Safety in the Vineyard: Table Grapes
• Ensuring Food Safety in the Vineyard: Wine Grapes
• FSMA Summary for Hops Growers
• FSMA Human Food Audit Checklist
• Acronyms
• Checklist for Retail Purchasing of Local Produce
• FDA and USDA Organization Charts (just regarding food safety)

Checklists and Exemption Calculators

• Daily Pre-Harvest Checklist (PDF)
• Daily Pre-Harvest Checklist (Excel)  ncr_pre-harvest_checklist.xlsx
• Exemption Envelope (front)
• Exemption Envelope (back) We can send you copies of this envelope if you contact us (ncrfsma@iastate.edu).
• Fillable version of Exemption Envelope from K-State

Videos

• Food safety training videos in the Hmong language (subtitles in English).  Four videos covering Good Agricultural Practices

Water Testing Labs in the Region

• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Nebraska

Water testing lab maps are updated by the map owner as needed.  Resources that may help you create a map or assist in communication with the laboratories include:

• Michigan State University protocol Creating a Database of Water Quality Testing Labs (September 2018)
• Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) Bridges publication Agricultural Water Testing and the FSMA Produce Safety Rule (Summer 2018, page 5)
• APHL Webinar Emerging Issue: Analysis of Agricultural Water and Spent Sprout Irrigation Water (April 2019) and associated Resources List. 

Online quizzes about Value Added Products 

• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Nebraska
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• South Dakota
• Wisconsin

Resources Developed by Partner Organizations

	Food Safety Best Practices for Local Food Entrepreneurs- The purpose of this publication is to provide information about best practices to maintain safety standards for products sold by local food entrepreneurs. Regulations vary in each state, so be aware of your location’s specific requirements.
	The Produce Safety Alliance provides several resources for use in PSA Curriculum classes to help farmers understand and be compliant with the rule.
	The Food Safety Resource Clearinghouse is a curated source of Produce Safety and Preventive Controls for Human Food related resources.  Anyone can search and view the resources linked to the clearinghouse by using one or all of the search tools (type, topic, state, and/or keywords). The is a national tool to find supporting materials developed across the country or tools developed in your own state.  Resources that have been peer-reviewed are labeled as such.
	The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provides guidance and fact sheets to help processors, farmers, and educators understand and be compliant with the rule.

This work is supported by the Food Safety Outreach Program [grant no. 2018-70020-28877 and grant no. 2021-70020-35732] from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.