Hello produce farming community,
A few updates from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry, Produce Safety Program, on inspections, On Farm Readiness Reviews, required records for Qualified Exempt farms, and a mass mailing survey.
Inspections
Inspection season is kicking off. About 14 farms will be inspected. All inspections will be pre-announced and scheduled at the farm’s convenience to the best of our ability. Subpart E – Agricultural Water is still under enforcement discretion as the proposed changes are assessed. Below are links to factsheets and a link to the self-assessment tool:
On Farm Readiness Reviews (OFRRs)
What is an OFRR? It is a non-regulatory, FREE assessment of a farm’s produce food safety practices and readiness for inspection under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule. Resources are provided.
OFRRs are still available to ALL produce farms. Our contract with University of Maine Cooperative Extension allows Dr. Robson Machado to attend 5 OFRR’s before 6/30/22 and 5 after. If you would like to request an OFRR please do so by emailing or calling Lindsay. If you have been receiving calls/emails about scheduling an OFRR that you requested years ago and no longer want to participate in the program, please let us know and we will remove you from the request list.
Lindsay.Werner@maine.gov / 207-592-2687
If your farm has already participated in a OFRR but you would like further technical assistance, feel free to make that request.
Qualified Exempt Farms
If your farm’s produce sales are less than $25K adjusted for inflation, the Produce Safety Rule does not apply to you. However, you are still required to produce safe food per the Food Drug & Cosmetic Act.
Your farm qualifies for an exemption from the Produce Safety Rule (21 CFR 112) if your produce sales are greater than $25K adjusted for inflation, your total food sales are less than $500K adjusted for inflation, and greater than 50% of your sales are to Qualified End Users (direct to consumer or a retail establishment/restaurant within the same state or within 275 miles of the farm).
The Produce Safety Rule requires farms that qualify for this exemption to maintain a record updated annually demonstrating their exemption status. Download a WORD template developed by the Produce Safety Alliance at Cornell. You do not need to send the record to us. We may request to review it.
The current values for calculating your farm’s 3-year average are:
|
Inflation Adjustments
|
2019
|
2020
|
2021
|
2019-2021
(3 year average)
|
|
$500K total food sales
|
$572,499
|
$579,022
|
$603,202
|
$584,908
|
|
$25K produce sales
|
$28,625
|
$28,951
|
$30,160
|
$29,245
|
Mass Mailing Farm Survey
A mail survey will be going out to farms whose status has not been verified directly by the farm. This survey is for ALL farms, not just produce farms. An educational needs survey specific to produce farms will be sent out with the farm survey. Your participation is appreciated as Bureau of Agriculture staff are required to conduct site-visits where no response is received via phone, email, or survey. Site visits consume a lot of resources and having a state employee show up unannounced can be a bit of an unwelcome shock.
If you would like to save paper, please fill out the electronic survey:
QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, SUGGESTIONS?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Lindsay Werner
Inspection Process Analyst Coordinator
Lindsay.Werner@maine.gov
207-592-2687
|
