POLICY :: Food Safety

TAKE ACTION! COMMENT TO THE FDA BY JULY 23!

Download the instructions on how to comment
Download the guide the AFDO metrics

Download CAFF comments concerning the forthcoming FDA guidance on food safety preventive controls for fresh produce

Download CAFF's Good Agricultural Practices

Like all farmers and farmer organizations, CAFF is deeply concerned that food not cause illness or death, and that practices that create risks of bacterial contamination be closely monitored.

An estimated 100 million people fall ill from eating food in the United States each year, maybe 500,000 are hospitalized and 5,000 die. However, there are almost no documented cases of people being hospitalized or dying from fresh whole produce. Most of the cases associated with produce are processed products, such as unpasteurized apple juice or salsa.

A series of cases of serious illness associated with leafy green vegetables are documented by the government to be from fresh-cut greens in sealed plastic bags. CAFF has been trying to prevent the imposition of mandatory on-farm practices on all farmers as a result of the problems of this processing industry.

CAFF is developing a set of basic food safety practices that all farmers can implement, in accordance with the true risks they face. But we want to avoid mandatory “one size fits all” rules that could easily destroy the fresh local food system that so many have worked so hard to create. We want farmers to be able to continue to implement biological practices that in fact control pathogens.

What You Can Do

• Donate to our Food Safety Campaign. Your special gift is urgently needed.
• View our local food sheet
• Join our email list if you'd like to receive updates on this issue!
• See the Executive Summary of CAFF's Food Safety White Paper. Or download the full report.

Current Issues

• Leafy Greens
• CA State Food Safety Legislation
• Federal Food Safety Legislation

Information

• Food Safety Press and Media

• Food Safety Resources
• Download a Food Safety update, written by CAFF's Policy Director (December 2009)