FDA Safety Rules Part 2

FDA Safety Rules Part 2. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

The FDA has extended the comment period on a couple of new rules that would drastically affect tree fruit producers here in the northwest. Chris Schlect with NW Hort Council says one of the biggest components has to do with irrigation.

SCHLECT: The other major issue we have with the grower rule is the water testing. A lot of growers in the Pacific Northwest obtain irrigation water from open canals or rivers and where that water would hit the fruit in terms of like overhead sprinklers or even under tree sprinklers that hit the fruit during the growing season, FDA would want that water to be tested once a week.

He says they have raised issues with the FDA over the cost and effectiveness of the practice. Schlect says it’s really important that producers use this extended comment period to make their concerns heard.

SCHLECT: These are proposed rules. There is hope that they will around the margins modify what they are suggesting and we certainly hope they will do so. We’ll be arguing that their whole approach is wrong. They’re taking the approach of an umbrella approach over all of produce that even though tree fruits have traditionally not been a serious problem in food safety terms, we’re included in this umbrella approach.

Again, Schlect strongly urges all producers to go online to the FDA’s site and let your comments be heard on this issue.

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.