Erin Morris, Acting Deputy Administrator (email)
On April 25th AMS
and the rest of our colleagues at USDA were pleased to welcome Secretary
Sonny Perdue to the Department. As the Secretary literally rolled up
his sleeves and shared his vision for USDA, one point especially resonated with
the work that the AMS Specialty
Crops Program (SCP) has undertaken as part of our efforts to continuously
improve how we provide services to the produce industry.
We look forward to
supporting the Secretary and his vision to better serve our stakeholders, the specialty
crops industry and those that enjoy all that it offers.
|
|
In April 2016, the Specialty
Crops Program’s Specialty Crops Inspection
Division (SCI) launched GroupGAP, a new food safety certification
program that is part of our USDA Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) suite of services. Our voluntary
USDA GAP programs help verify that produce growers and handlers have taken
measures to reduce the risk of contamination. Commercial buyers look for USDA GAP-certified
suppliers to source safe specialty products. While larger operations can devote
the resources needed to become GAP certified, some smaller entities cannot. Until now. GroupGAP allows farmers, food hubs, and
marketing organizations of all sizes to band together and pool resources to
achieve USDA GAP certification.
|
|
Did you know there is a free service offered by the U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) that has resulted in
an estimated savings of more than $140 million to the produce industry in the
past three years?
If not, Jose (Tony) Velasquez (picture above), a Senior Marketing Specialist
with AMS’s Specialty Crops Program (SCP) wants to give you the facts about the “Good
Delivery” Hotline. Good
Delivery is the term used in F.O.B. sales
to describe goods that were shipped in suitable condition and should arrive at
the contracted destination without abnormal deterioration. The hotline is a
free service offered by SCP’s Perishable Agricultural Commodities
Act (PACA) Division.
|
Dan Friar - Web
Specialist, AMS Public Affairs
In 2015, AMS redesigned its website with
the goal of providing a premier informational tool for the agricultural
industry. Through careful planning, thoughtful design, and a primary focus on
user experience and usability, we've taken the best of government expertise and
put it into creating our new website.
|