The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (aka GAPs Guide), originally published in 1998, set food safety recommendations for the production and handling of fresh produce. These recommendations were intended to apply to all fresh produce commodities that are reasonably likely to be eaten raw - asparagus and apples to watermelons and zucchini; root crops, row crops, bush and tree crops; large operations and small; across the U.S. and imports. The 1998 GAPs Guide became the foundation of dozens of GAPs food safety standards, training programs and audit checklists around the world. Its effectiveness has been demonstrated in that most of the hundreds of commodities that we refer to as "fresh produce" have never been implicated in a foodborne illness outbreak, and in that the most likely food safety risks described in the 1998 GAPs Guide are still considered the most likely food safety risks for production and handling of fresh produce today.
In August 2008, FDA announced their intention to update the decade-old GAPs Guide. As part of that announcement, FDA offered a 90-day period for the public to comment on ways the Guide could be improved and ways to enhance its adoption among the affected industry. Along with other produce trade associations, United Fresh Produce Association submitted to FDA comments from a cross section of its membership. However, we noted that segments of the agricultural community had remained largely silent. Therefore United Fresh convened a 2-day public meeting in February 2009 to collect further comments and advice to FDA on ways to enhance the GAPs Guide and its use. The meeting was open to all stakeholders, including government, academic, consumer, the affected industry, and the individuals and organizations that support them. Over 80 individuals participated in that meeting.
The meeting began with six invited presentations regarding GAPs, how they were developed, how they are used today and deficiencies that have been observed in their implementation. The attendees then divided into four facilitated breakout groups to deliberate on the GAPs. A series of questions had been developed to initiate the discussions, but groups were not restricted in their discussions. Afterwards, the attendees reconvened and their comments and recommendations were reported by the groups' facilitators.
Accessible from this website (in pdf format) are the meeting agenda, the list of meeting attendees, the invited presentations, the questions presented to the breakout groups, the reports of the breakout groups (Blue, Red, Orange and Green), and the compiled comments that were submitted to FDA by United Fresh on behalf of the attendees. Also provided are the United Fresh comments to FDA submitted in November 2008 and a link to FDA's 1998 Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables.
United Fresh extends sincere appreciation to Dr. Michelle Smith, FDA CFSAN and Captain Thomas Hill, FDA CFSAN for their informative presentations; and to Kathleen Staley, USDA AMS; Elizabeth Bihn, Cornell University; Albert Chambers, Monachus Consulting; and Dr. Marion Aller, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, for equally informative presentations and their expert facilitation and synopsis of the breakout groups. United Fresh also extends sincere appreciation to the 80+ stakeholders of the fresh produce supply chain who invested in their industry by attending this meeting and participating in the dialogue.
For more information, please contact Dr. David Gombas, senior vice president of food safety and technology at United Fresh, at 202-303-3411
Meeting attendees are briefed on the GAPs Guide and how it is being used today.
Breakout groups have in-depth discussions and provide comments.
Over 80 stakeholders from industry, government and academia participated in the United Fresh Produce GAPs Meeting.
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