About FSMA

The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011 (FSMA) was signed into law by President Obama in response to several incidents of contaminated produce that reached the public and caused illness and, in some cases, death.

The stated intent of FSMA, therefore, is "to ensure the U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it" (https://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/FSMA/default.htm).  


The regulations are still being promulgated, and stakeholder input is more critical at this point than at perhaps any other time.  For example, one requirement of FSMA involved testing of irrigation water multiple times per season.  Implementation of water testing has been delayed after farmers and farmer advocates declared that "some of the requirements are too complex to understand and implement" (https://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/FSMA/ucm561844.htm).

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has provided extensive resources on FSMA.  Rather than reprint it here, we encourage you to take a look at their website:  https://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/FSMA/default.htm.  Each state also has a designated training/enforcement body that can provide hard copies of the regulations.

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