Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
This week, the Commissioner and Rhonda discuss the outcome of the recent listening session for produce farmers and industry representatives to find out more about the federal government’s proposed produce safety rule.
The Food and Drug Administration’s produce safety rule could mean big changes for produce farmers and packers, so the NCDA&CS wanted to give the industry an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the rule. FDA Deputy Commissioner Michael Taylor and James Gorny, senior advisor for produce safety, were on hand to present information and answer questions.
North Carolina was the first of five states to hold a listening session about the rule. About 135 people attended the session at the State Fairgrounds, and another 300 watched it live on the Web. Questions came in from several other states, including California, Georgia, South Carolina and Vermont.
Troxler says farmers are concerned about their ability to produce their commodities under the rules because they have not been regulated by FDA before. The portions of the rule governing use of water are of particular concern, he says.
Troxler also encourages farmers to submit comments about the rule to FDA. For more information, visit FDA’s website about the Food Safety Modernization Act.
Click on the audio player below to listen to Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda recap the listening session. And if you missed the session but are interested in what was said, you can watch it online here.
[Audio:http://info.ncagr.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/Troxler_3-5.mp3|titles=Today’s Topic for March 5]
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