Larry Gabriel, Assistant Director of Regulatory Programs, N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Food and Drug Division, explains the standards for good agricultural practices (GAPs) set forth in the 1998 originating document. The FDA recently announced a comment period to seek information about current agricultural practices and conditions, risk factors associated with these practices, and possible measures that FDA could implement that would enhance the safety of fresh produce. Within the same course of time, The Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) drafted a Model Code of Practice for Produce Safety from a request initiated by the tomato industry in Florida. Gabriel shares an update on the “Model Code” and gives participating producers from North Carolina a chance to respond with questions.

AFDO Feb 2009 update >>