St. Louis, Mo.-based Schnuck Markets Inc. joined with the University of Missouri Extension to sponsor a food safety workshop for Midwestern growers Jan. 25-26.
“Supporting small, local farms is important to Schnucks,” Mike Tipton, Schnucks vice president of produce, said in a news release. “Farmers have an enormous job to do every day, and for very small farms, understanding food safety rules can be daunting, so we wanted to do our part to make it easier.”
Growers from 28 Missouri and Illinois farms attended the two-day training, provided for a fee of $40. The low fee for the event was made possible through support from the University of Missouri Extension and a Missouri Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant, according to the release. The North Central Region Food Safety Modernization Act Training Center also provided support for the workshop.
The workshop focused on the Food Safety Modernization Act produce safety rule, according to the release. While larger farms have been required to comply with food safety regulations since 2017, many small farms will have to be in compliance within the next two years.