Agri-Bytes

|

New Product Expo

|

Florida Focus

Subscribe to Fresh from the Field to get this content in your inbox every month!

---

Florida Focus
September 2009

GAPs training materials available free for the asking

Who says there’s no such thing as a free lunch? University of Florida’s Keith Schneider does, for one.

Schneider, an associate professor of food science in the Gainesville-based Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, will give growers free of charge several pieces of educational material that promote food safety and good agricultural practices.

He’s able to do this because of a grant he received to help underwrite the cost.

The materials originally were intended for tomato growers because of state-mandated T-GAPs, or tomato good agricultural practices. But the goal has since been expanded to include melons, berries and leafy greens—other commodities that historically have had a high number of food safety recalls.

But no grower will be turned away, regardless of the commodity he or she produces, Schneider says.

One of the best ways to instill good practices is to lead by example, Schneider says. A recent survey found that only about 65 percent of males wash their hands after using the bathroom. That means that about one-third don’t.

“If the workers don’t see you washing your hands, they aren’t going to wash their hands,” he says.

And washing hands after using the bathroom is one of several key parts of personal hygiene contained in GAPs documents.

To help promote hand washing as well as other personal hygiene practices, Schneider has laminated posters that can be hung in areas where workers will see them frequently.

He also has pictoral flip-charts that are perfect for conducting tail-gate training. Much of the educational material came from Cornell University’s GAPs program, Schneider says.

A DVD in both English and Spanish that was created by the University of Florida takes the personal hygiene message further.

Schneider’s funding grant ends in February, but he says he hopes to be able to renew it for another year.

For more information, contact Schneider a t keiths29@ufl.edu or (352) 392-1991, ext. 309.