Food Safety CFVGA

Food Safety CFVGA

Maura Bennett
Maura Bennett

Colorado’s Fruit and Vegetable Growers say they are always keeping up with the latest information around food safety.

The COVID-19 crisis and recent salmonella outbreak linked to onions has been a reminder for consumers about food safety but local growers consider food safety a number one priority all the time.

Marilyn Bay Drake spokeswoman for the Colorado Fruit and vegetable Growers says they teamed up with Colorado State University to hold dozens of safety training seminars over the past few years following the implementation of the federal Produce Safety Rule.

Drake:” The Food Safety Modernization Act and the Produce Safety Rule within that does require most farms, there’s some exceptions for really small farms, but most farms have to have at least one person certified and it’s kind of a one time deal. That’s the requirement but A people change and move on to other jobs so the person that’s trained in food safety may move on but it’s also just generally a good rule for growers to avail themselves to any and all food safety and other training through Colorado Fruit and Vegetable Growers or other organizations. It’s just one of those things that you need to do.”

The salmonella outbreak has now made more than 900 people sick in 43 states and Canada including Colorado. Colorado grown onions are considered safe.

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The CDC has linked the illness to red onions from California produce supplier Thomson International, but because of the risk of contamination, the company has recalled red, yellow, white, and sweet onions shipped since May 1st.

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