Source: NCDA&CS, 9/22/14

On Aug. 26, Commissioner Troxler played host to his 10th annual Food Safety Forum at the State Fairgrounds. The forum allows farmers, regulators, food businesses and health professionals to come together and discuss food safety issues.

The main topic of discrussion at this years forum was the Food Safety Modernization Act, which took effect in early 2011. In opening comments, Commissoner Troxler stated that the law is a "historic change in food safety standards in the United States, probably the most sweeping change that we will ever see in my lifetime." The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is in charge of administering this law and we are currently in the comment period for the second rule-making period. "What we know is this is probably going to happen very quickly, we are interested to see what the second round of rules will mean and how it will affect our food delivery system in the United States," he said. The department is working closely within the specified rule-making period and is very interested in the implementation of rules. 

This year's forum also featured a dialogue pannel titled "Food Safety on the Farm," moderated by Assistant Commissioner Joe Reardon. The pannel was composed of four industry representatives: Richard McKellogg of Lowes Foods, Shawn Harding of Southside Farms, Tommy Porter of Porter Farms and Kristi Hocutt of Triple J Produce. Each member of the panel was posed the question of the importance of food safety in their business. The constant theme in the answers from the panalists was that consumers trust that the food they are purchasing is safe. That is a trust that constantly stays on the mind of producers, and they are aware that business relies on maintaining that trust. McKellogg explained in his comments that until now the produce industry has had the sole responsibility of policing itself. With the introduction and implementation of the new FSMA rules, that is about to change. 

For those that we unable to attend the Forum, you can visit the Food Safety Forum website to view videos and read a more extensive recap of the event.