BUILDING THE CAPACITY OF COMMUNITY-BASED PRODUCE SAFETY EDUCATION FOR HARD-TO-REACH FARMERS IN THE MID-ATLANTIC

The proposed project seeks to build the capacity of community-based produce safety educators and foster a culture of food safety among specialty crop producers in the Mid-Atlantic region through education and coaching centered on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule. The project will expand outreach to economically disadvantaged, urban, and hard-to-reach specialty crop farmers in the region while training community-based food safety educators to provide peer-to-peer coaching and help farmers reduce risk, be more competitive, and institute better practices on their farms. The project seeks to change the predominant mindset among small-scale farmers that food safety regulations and certification are burdensome steps only necessary if you need to pass inspection or an audit. A culture of food safety means farmers understand that minimized risk and food quality are intertwined and FSMA compliance or GAP certification are reasonable and attainable, and beneficial for their farm business. This project will: 1) Prepare 6 new community-based Food Safety Educators to provide on-farm coaching, tools and solutions to their farmer peers; 2) Broaden the skills and leadership of the 4 African American food safety educator trainees we work with currently; 3) Deliver workshops that increase the implementation rate of food safety practices of 100 economically disadvantaged, urban and hard-to-reach specialty crop farmers. 4) Enhance competitiveness and market reach of 28 of those farmers through on-farm risk assessments, one-on-one coaching to comply with food safety laws and certifications, and enter wholesale markets.