In an exciting bonus episode, we share a roundtable discussion with some of our esteemed season one guests on the topic "Creating Cultures of Food Safety." Anita Adalja, Lorig Hawkins, and Nathan Stacey all sat down with us to share their visions for good food safety farm cultures, and leave us with some maps on how we might arrive there.Check out our guests' websites:Not Our FarmMiddle Ground FarmTilth AllianceDo you have a great idea for an episode, or a topic you want to learn more about? Email us at [email protected] to share your thoughts!

Anita Adalja, founder of Not Our Farm, sat down with the food safety team to discuss how community care and considerations for farmworkers--the heart of farm operations--lead to healthy work environments, healthy food, happy people, and beyond!ResourcesNot Our Farm WebsiteNot Our Farm Zine: A Guide to Working on FarmsFair Share CSA CoalitionHelp us continually improve! Respond to the Food Safety Dish Survey!

The food safety team sat down with Donna Clements, Produce Safety Alliance Coordinator and Northeast Regional Extension Associate. We discuss what sanitizers are, how to choose and use them wisely, and about plenty of tools and resources to guide you in your practice.ResourcesProduce Safety Alliance: https://cals.cornell.edu/produce-safety-allianceIntroduction to Selecting an EPA-Labeled Sanitizer: https://resources.producesafetyalliance.cornell.edu/documents/Sanitizer-Factsheet.pdfUVM Sanitizer Dose Calculator: https://ageng.w3.uvm.edu/sanitizer/index.htmlUVM Safely Dispensing Sanitizers: https://blog.uvm.edu/cwcallah/2020/12/15/safely-dispensing-sanitizers/National GAPs program Decision Tree on Postharvest Water Use (includes SOP template): https://cals.cornell.edu/national-good-agricultural-practices-program/resources/educational-materials/decision-trees/postharvest-waterFood Safety Considerations for Postharvest Washing of Produce and Sanitation of Packing Areas: https://www.foodsafetyclearinghouse.org/sites/default/files/files/fs353e.pdfPSA Sanitizer tool (opens as an Excel sheet): https://resources.producesafetyalliance.cornell.edu/documents/PSA-Labeled-Sanitizers-for-Produce.xlsx

Compost... one of the great wonders of the world! We got the dish from Seattleites Nathan Stacey, Farm Programs Director at Tilth Alliance and Liv Johansson, Compost Facility Operator at the Woodland Park Zoo & Vice President of the Washington Organics Recycling Council (WORC.) We talked soil science, the basics of compost, the coveted "Zoo Doo" compost program at Woodland Park Zoo, and how compost's myriad of uses bring bounty and stability to not only farms, but also help the earth as we know it spin round!Resources:Washington State University Compost Mix CalculatorTilth Alliance ResourcesWORC ResourcesSoils for Salmon

Have you pondered ponics systems? Sean Fogarty is a Research Specialist at the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety focused on-farm produce safety in the Northeast, and hydroponic and aquaponic food safety nationwide. We talked all about aquaponics & hydroponics, risks to consider, and how interested growers can venture into ponics operations of their own. Some post-show notes from Sean:When recirculating a nutrient solution, water treatment of some form will be required to maintain optimal water quality (chemically, physically, and biologically). At the most basic this includes physical filtration to remove particulates from the recirculating flow.Accumulation of organic matter (OM) in the nutrient solution is something to avoid, whereas in soil-based farming you want to increase OM. There are a few ways to measure the OM accumulation, the simplest of which is turbidity. People also use ORP (oxygen reduction potential) as an indicator of nutrient solution quality.Even for exempt farms and produce, it is a good idea to prevent contact between the recirculating water and the edible portions of the produce. This reduces the chance of a single contamination event spreading to the rest of the system.Resources:Factsheets - Produce Safety in Hydroponic and Aquaponic Operations https://go.uvm.edu/ponicsCleaning and SanitizingFish Health and HandlingHarvest and Postharvest HandlingPersonal Health and HygieneWildlife and Domesticated AnimalsHydroponic Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Course - Ohio State University ($150 fee)Qualifies as “GAPs training” for USDA GAP/GHP Audit or as “Worker Education and Training” for GAPs Harmonized Food Safety Standard USDA Checklist and Harmonized GAP+ AuditCEA Food Safety CoalitionIndustry group that developed supplemental guidance for CEA operations undergoing or preparing for Global Food Safety Initiative or equivalent auditsCEA Food Safety Certified label and certification information

Fellow local food safety collaborators, Kentucky Horticulture Council's Dakota Moore and Dani D'Antonio, dive in to the world of water testing--various sources, how to test your water, and best practices to ensure your water is continually safe with minimal risk.Kentucky Horticulture Council Resources:Ag Water Sampling & Testing Resources: https://kyhortcouncil.org/ag-water-sampling-testing/Ag Water Testing How-To Videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVyJ0VH6aG-zE3Nq6HOCC0b-XuMFMFo7QNECAFS Water Testing: https://go.uvm.edu/waterlabmap

University of Vermont Extension Associate Professor of Agricultural Engineering and Director of the Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety (NECAFS) Chris Callahan clarifies common questions and misconceptions around cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting, and shares some simple methods to incorporate hygienic design practices into your operation to streamline your food safety management.LINKS:UVM Ag Engineering Site. http://go.uvm.edu/agengSCRUB Project Page. http://go.uvm.edu/scrubA Guide to Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Disinfecting. http://go.uvm.edu/clean-sanitize-disinfectCleaning Tools & Supplies for Produce Farms. https://go.uvm.edu/cleaningtoolsCleaning Tools for Produce Farms - Video Series. https://go.uvm.edu/cleaningtoolsvideoDetergents for Farm Food Contact Surfaces. https://go.uvm.edu/detergentsHygienic Design for Produce Farms. http://go.uvm.edu/hygienicdesign

Wisconsin Farmers Union members Danielle Endvick, LaDonna Green, and Kriss Marion share their individual farm stories, discuss why storytelling matters more than ever, and how to share yours with audiences hungry for both good food and good stories big or small.

University of Minnesota Extension educator Annalisa Hultberg and Laura Frerichs of Loon Farm, a diversified 40-acre organic farm in Hutchinson, Minnesota, shine a light on food safety risks commonly hidden in plain sight and simple ways to effectively reduce those risks.

Farmer Lorig Hawkins takes us through their food safety journey and how they formed a dynamic food safety plan at Middle Ground Farm in Central Texas.