School Garden Food Safety Arm to School Summit January 29, 2015 Rick Sherman Farm to School / School Garden Coordinator
ODE Farm To School Website: www.ode.state.or.us/go/f2sgardens Everything located here!
Garden Food Safety Liability/roadblocks It s all about Minimizing Risks Serving food from the garden: NO DIFFERENT as serving food in a cafeteria from produce distributor! Know what you re doing & have a SOLID system in place for minimizing risks
OREGON: No regulations re: Produce. (as opposed to poultry, meat inspections)
OREGON: No regulations re: Produce. (as opposed to poultry, meat inspections) County Health Inspector Doesn t care whether food comes from Sysco or garden, it just needs to be handled properly! BTW, does that Commercial garden have a fence??? Just asking
In Oregon, it s Not an option NOT to.. Recycle in Oregon, Compost in Oregon *(in many communities)
Liability You can DO what you want! However.. EVERYONE is Liable!
Liability USDA s Take: used to be negative (Don t serve food from gardens, don t compost, etc.). They have changed recently STILL uneasiness surrounding SG s from others.
Liability Respect Biology! The laws of physics and biology apply no matter what! Why (some) people don t want anything to do w/gardens Principals, School Boards, Facilities are afraid of liability
Garden Food Safety Have a system for: TRAINING DOCUMENTATION Your County Health Department, Parents, administration will love you. Wouldn t it be cool if someone would create a system for you?
Garden Food Safety Here you go!
Documentation & Training Program Contains: Companion guide/instructions Startup Checklist Weekly Checklist USDA Best Practices for Handling Food Staff training & log Student training & log Composting logs Available for download on our website
Documentation & Training This process is not done just to be MEAN! Inspector s common saying: If it isn t documented IT DIDN T HAPPEN!!!
Documentation & Training Startup Checklist: Soil tested once a year for Lead and contaminants Irrigation: Municipal water should be used, if using other sources, test for total coliform bacteria at least twice a year Irrigation systems should be cleaned and sanitized regularly.
Documentation & Training Startup Checklist: One person in charge (Typically Garden Coordinator). This person should get a county food handler card (cheap and available At www.orfoodhandler.com) Recommended that at least ONE person should be Certified through a SG Coordinator training Hey! You ve done that!!
Documentation & Training Startup Checklist: A few words about raised gardens: Pressure treated timber Railroad ties Tires
Documentation & Training Startup Checklist: Chemicals, lubricants, fertilizers, paints, cleaning supplies stored in a locked shed not in close proximity to garden or food. Need to prove seeds/plants come from reputable sources. Don t accept food from private home gardens.
Documentation & Training Weekly Checklist: Composting: ODE recommends that you DON T compost unless you know what you re doing, have a solid system for doing it right, and train and document your process! MONITORED system for collecting cafeteria scraps, responsible adult or student. Staff and Students TRAINED on what to accept Best practices: posters and assemblies Log
Documentation & Training I just threw these together. They are available at our website, or make your own.
Documentation & Training Weekly Checklist: Evidence of animals? One of the most asked concerns I get. What to do with cats, deer.. Extremely hard situation, you are in THEIR area. If there is evidence of abuse, consider fencing. Big drawback for some schools NOT to have a garden by some administrations.
Documentation & Training Weekly Checklist: Fertilizers only applied by (trained) adult HANDWASHING a must before entering garden, or whenever hands become contaminated Sick people excluded from activities SHOES: no flip-flops or bare feet (non-commercially prepared) Manure not to be used
Documentation & Training Weekly Checklist: Serving the food: use USDA Guide if cafeteria doesn t take care of prepping and serving* Don t use pesticides/insecticides No gray water, waste water, recycled water Containers used to transport be food grade and cleanable No wicker, etc.
Documentation & Training Staff Training: Goes over all of these items in detail. All staff sign the log and keep for a year. Student leaders in charge of compost stations need to be trained in this piece.
Documentation & Training Student Training: Ensures they listen to person in charge; and *Hygiene, Washing hands a must. Shoes and physical safety like dealing with tools. *Eating right out of the garden *Ill students excluded (shouldn t be in school anyway) Recommend doing this for each classroom once, have the class sign the log and keep for a year.
Documentation & Training Comprehensive Garden Safety program are available at: www.ode.state.or.us/go/f2sgardens Click on the School Gardens box and scroll down to the safety section Many other helpful items as well!
Schools Purchasing Direct from Farms
Questions?
Thank you! Feel free to contact me at: Rick Sherman Oregon Department of Education Farm to School/School Garden Coordinator 503.947.5863 rick.sherman@state.or.us www.ode.state.or.us/f2sgardens
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