This hands-on workshop will allow attendees to learn about and implement best practices and food safety techniques for on-farm pathogen control in order to meet the stringent requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The FSMA as well as HACCP-based food safety plans and related pre-requisite programs will soon become a regulatory requirement.
This training will include:
- Discussion of bacteriostatic and bactericidal control points in the manufacture of cheese
- Key aspects of micro-organisms most relevant to cheese safety
- Validating and verifying the efficacy of preventive controls
- Best practices to maintain, monitor, and control cheesemaking operations to manage food safety concerns
- Environmental pathogen control and monitoring
- Case studies to highlight specific practices important for artisan cheesemaking operations
- Raw ingredient and product pathogen testing
- Local state rules and regulations impacting artisan / farmstead cheese making
Who should attend?
This workshop has been conducted in several states and has included both regulatory officials, artisan/farmstead cheesemakers and dairy product manufacturers. Combining these groups within the same workshop provides additional opportunities to meet with, discuss, and address steps in continuing to provide a safe and nutritional farmstead product. The workshop is recommended for:
- State and federal regulators who must gain on farm cheese making knowledge in this unique dairy manufacturing segment
- Artisan and Farmstead cheese & dairy product manufacturers looking to gain information and maximize food safety processes on farm
- Extension individuals who wish to further on farm food safety knowledge order to provide better producer support
- Field staff who want a more in-depth knowledge of issues found in on-farm dairy product manufacturing
- University or other training institutes with dairy food safety programs
Instructor:
Dennis D'Amico, Ph.D., formerly Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese
Hotel Accomodations: A special room rate of $105/night is available at the Holiday Inn East for this Workshop. Please mention you are with the Dairy Practices Council to obtain the group rate. Make your reservations by Friday, October 18 to get the garanteed rate.