I spent yesterday at a food safety plan writing class that
the Penn State Agricultural Extension service workshops for farmers in the
area. The Agricultural Extension Service has passed its one-hundredth year of funding
from the USDA to educate farmers and conduct research for better agricultural
practices.[1]
However, their funding for education and research has been shrinking. Near
Kutztown, two hours drive along highway 222 puts into perspective the rural
nature of Pennsylvania that is still a reality for many. The back roads that twist
and branch off among steep hills run perpendicular to a busy four lane highway.
The duality of commuting in a rural place with so much traffic is what most New
Yorkers traveling to New Hope for the weekend must feel; we are so off the
beaten path! Yet, we are only 30 minutes from highway 95.
Entering the conference room, the spectrum of farmers highlighted
the range that Agricultural Extension services have to accommodate and prepare
for. Two men in their early thirties sat together with their laptops, their
clothes too new and their faces too bright, ahhh the educated hipsters that are
moving the organic CSA movement, I thought. The man to their left, middle-aged with
a jack'o'latern smile and brittle eyes, boasted of his massive pumpkin crop,
soon to be exported to Europe; maybe I am too harsh but after the third time of
me stretching from sitting and him checking out my breasts, I decided he could
play the antagonist role in this column. Adjoining the corner of Mr. Cucurbit, a
young Mennonite couple, him, in his staid button-up, jeans, and suspenders,
her, in her prairie dress and bonnet. Their behavior affable, but his speech
was slow and swallowed, giving me the impression that his biggest worries were about
dirt and God; while her speech was clear, concise, business-like. My respect
went out to her, without really knowing her. Here was a young woman who
probably raised the children, looked after the house, ran the business and
still had time to guide her husbands' thoughts on dirt and God. An old 'salt of the earth' farmer sat beside
them; the only one aside from the Mennonites' that mailed in his RSVP instead
of emailing and of course they couldn't find his registration. I felt badly,
here was a man of an older time, and older generation; I hoped he had a woman
beside him at home still, keeping track of important papers and submitting the
information to keep up to date with new regulations and audits, but reality can
be bleaker than fiction. He was like a lean-to barn in his worn trucker cap and
earth crusted clothes, with hands common to old farmers, strong stumps and
square fingers dirt caked through the deep wrinkles where even when washed it
remains. Beside my mom, Amy, and myself, sat Brett. A familiar face, he
apprenticed with my Dad before starting his own farm called Bedminster Orchard selling
his diversified produce and value added products like cider and apple butter at
farmers markets. For introductions, Brett was first and it says a lot about his
self-esteem and maturity for someone in his early twenties to calmly deliver a
brief informative introduction to a room of strangers. I, for example, get
nervous, stumble and inevitably finish a little more red in the face than when
I started. Brett shares an assuredness with many older farmers, a reservoir
they draw upon from knowing what they want in life, learning the skills and
having the tenacity to stick with it.
All of us, this miniature farmer sample gathered to learn
how to comply with USDA Farm Food Safety Plan measures. It was a good review,
not just about washing your hands; the speaker shared a lot of insight from his
auditing years, about how the details of managing and working a farm fit into
the bigger picture of food safety. Each farm is going to have its own unique risks
depending upon the type, size and sales model it has, but the themes, of
cleanliness, orderliness, logging records, and writing down and educating
workers on procedures no matter how obvious they may seem, remain the same. It's
about prevention of food borne illness but more so about traceability. About
half the farmers in the room used auctions or brokers to move their wholesale
produce. All grocery stores require farmers they source from be audited by a third
party and subject to one or more of the three food and safety standards. For
the other half of us who market directly to customers auditing is voluntary
though I believe one of the food and health safety classes is mandatory. The
auditing process for us at Manoff Market will be mandatory to get our license
to sell our hard cider. However, this class for me is a useful reminder that
the record keeping and training and organizing for cleanliness will actually
help us in the long run. It will help us to see trends in our business and
business practices, help new employees familiarize themselves by making
training routine and second nature, and when everything is labeled and has its
place and space we become more efficient and some might say sane. Agricultural
extension service agents contribute by helping us farmers create better
practices in the field, which benefits consumers, as well as providing
education and resources for navigating the mire of paperwork that can seem
overwhelming to any farming enterprise.
[1]
"The Smith Lever Act formalized extension in 1914,
establishing USDA's partnership with land-grant universities to apply research
and provide education in agriculture. Congress created the extension system to
address exclusively rural, agricultural issues. At that time, more than 50
percent of the U.S. population lived in rural areas, and 30 percent of the
workforce was engaged in farming." Accessed 3/28/2018: https://nifa.usda.gov/cooperative-extension-history
