Flooded fields

What a storm last night! We got a lot of rain in Coshocton County in the last 12 hours. Anyone with produce may be wondering if it is safe to harvest vegetables (primarily leafy greens) that are in flooded fields. Please read this Fact Sheet from OSU Extension Produce Safety and Flooded Fields.

If the water that has flooded the field is from the flooding of a water source like a river or stream, then the vegetables should not be consumed. This is considered high risk, because there is no way to know what contamination could have been introduced into the field with that water. However, if the flooding is due to ponding, just too much rain on saturated soil, and no edible portion has contacted the water, then vegetables could be harvested. This is considered lower risk, but still requires a thorough risk assessment.

The Fact Sheet will walk you through a risk assessment to determine recommended actions.

Good Agricultural Practices

One role of OSU Extension is to help producers get their products to retail outlets and to consumer tables efficiently, safely and cost-effectively. And an important part of that effort is to ensure that producers are aware of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) that was signed into law in January 2011. This is an area that produce farmers especially need to know.

FSMA was created to ensure that more attention is focused on prevention of contamination and minimizing risk starting on the farm. According to the FDA, each year 1 out of every 6 Americans experiences foodbourne illness. Microbial contamination of food can occur at many points along the way from harvest to the time it is consumed.

It is especially important to consider food safety with fresh fruits and vegetables that will be eaten without cooking or heating in any way to kill microorganisms. Good Agricultural Practices(GAPs) are guidelines to ensure that fresh produce is handled in ways to prevent microbial contamination during growing, harvesting, sorting, packaging and storage. To learn more about GAP training opportunities or audit preparation, please click above or contact me at the Extension office at 622-2265.

Though we may not all be producers, we are all consumers, so it is important to correctly handle and prepare all foods. For any food safety questions, please visit Ohio State Food Safety or call the Ohio State Food Safety Info Line at 1-800-752-2751.