208.426.0228

jk@fsnwllc.com

Spring 2020 Newsletter & Upcoming Workshops

Summer 2020 Newsletter & Upcoming Workshops

SPRING 2020 NEWSLETTER
View this email in your browser
                                                                                             June 18, 2020

Dear Colleagues and Friends:

Greetings from Boise and Food Safety Northwest.   Summer is almost upon us.

We hope everyone made it through another month COVID-19 free.  Idaho is now fully opened and quarantining over, but unfortunately we continue to experience illnesses from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Although it is still best practice to avoid in-person educational programs in order to protect industry personnel, Food Safety Northwest is continuing to redesign our workshops so they can be delivered online with a high level of interactivity. 

We are pleased to offer our popular Internal Food Safety Auditor workshop and the new Practical Food Defense course through live instructor online delivery to your facility!  These courses are highly interactive and meet GFSI audit and FDA requirements.  A new feature of our registration process offers you the ability to initially register on a course waiting list at no cost!

The COVID-19 pandemic has been hard on industry, and especially for food entrepreneurs and small food processing businesses. We recognize this challenge, and have opened a no-cost Food Safety Clinic for these folks. In this issue of the FSNW newsletter, we are featuring Boise Vertical Farm, one of our clinic's participants who are operating a non-profit food business dedicated to helping individuals with substance abuse recovery. 

Thank you for what you do to feed us and to "keep it safe!"

Best wishes,

Jeff Kronenberg

NEWSLETTER TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. BOISE VERTICAL FARM
 
2. FOOD SAFETY CLINIC

3. WORKSHOPS

 
BOISE VERTICAL FARM.


THE BOISE VERTICAL FARM STORY
 
Food Safety Northwest is honored to have worked with Boise Vertical Farm through our food safety clinic. Boise Vertical Farm was founded in 2018 with the mission to create a safe community that provides hope and employment for individuals in substance abuse recovery by growing local produce.  BVF grows, packages, and sells fresh oyster mushrooms, micro-greens, herbs, and other produce.  They are a non-profit Idaho corporation that just received their 501 (c) 3 status.


 
Boise Vertical Farm is a link between recovery and long-term sobriety. Once someone completes a substance abuse recovery program, there is rarely a viable next step. Most individuals lack job skills, education, and most importantly a safe community to return to. The BVF focus is on breaking the cycle of relapse by providing financial stability in a safe environment of peer support, education and job training while providing opportunities for development and personal growth.


 
At BVF, people are given a chance to build or rebuild a resume. BVF employees will develop transferable skills through experience in all aspects of a non-profit social enterprise; for example, experience with food production, science and technology, sales, distribution, marketing, finance, fund raising, advertising, quality control, and food safety.


 
For more information on Boise Vertical Farm and their food products, see their website at: https://www.boiseverticalfarm.com/about
THE BOISE VERTICAL FARM TEAM
Top: Jeff Middleton, Co-Founder
Middle: Crystal Spencer, Co-Founder
Bottom: Steve Popish, Board Member, with wife Beth.

Pro Bono Food Safety Clinic

No Cost Technical Assistance Available to Small Food Processors and Non-Profits

 
  1. FSNW is providing free on-line consultation to small food processing businesses that need technical assistance with food safety and related areas.
  2. Please contact us at info@fsnwllc.com or (208) 426-0228 for more information and an application for assistance!

WORKSHOP PROGRAMS
  • Due to CDC Guidelines and the COVID-19 pandemic, FSNW has temporarily discontinued in-person workshops.
  • FSNW has redesigned our workshops for on-line delivery through Zoom Meetings.
  • Our online courses feature live instructors and interactive learning through group exercises and TurningPoint polling.
  • We will honor all "Early Bird" registrations for those that already registered on early bird waiting lists for cancelled courses.
  • All FSNW workshops can be viewed at: https://fsnwllc.com/food-safety-training-center/
INTERNAL FOOD SAFETY AUDITOR WORKSHOP
July 28 & 30, 2020 
12:45 pm to 5:00 pm Each Day- 8.5 hours Total

AGENDA 

Day One  12:45 pm to 5:00 pm

Introduction
● Overview and Purpose of Auditing
● Food Safety and HACCP  audits

Food Safety Standards
● NACMCF HACCP Standard
● Codex HACCP Standard
● GFSI Guidelines
● BRC, SQF, PrimusGFS Audit Schemes

SQF, BRC, PrimusGFS Audit Requirements
● Audit process overview
●  Internal auditor requirements

Day Two 12:45 pm to 5:00 pm

Audit Professional Conduct

 Audit Preparation
● Team selection
● Training
● Scheduling

 Audit Performance
● Conducting the Audit
● Findings

Audit Reporting

Documentation

Audit Closure and Corrective Action

Audit Program Management
● Follow-up to audits
● Reviewing audit process

General Knowledge and Skills for Audits
● Audit basics, skills, tools, and processes

Team Exercises

PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK:
"Valuable information for anyone involved in an audit."  Daniel Robinson, J.R. Simplot Company; Pasco, WA
 
Register- Internal Food Safety Auditor Workshop
PRACTICAL FOOD DEFENSE WORKSHOP
August 11, 13, 18 & 20, 2020 
12:45 pm to 5:00 pm Each Day- 17 hours Total
AGENDA 
 
Days 1 & 2- 8.5 hours      Awareness, Principles, and Regulations      12:45 pm to 5:00 pm, Each Day  
  • Welcome, Introductions, Agenda Review, Expectations
  • Part 1: Overview of Food Defense (Awareness Training)
  • Part 2: Principles of Food Defense
  • Part 3: Conducting Vulnerability Assessments [Exercises 1-3: KAT Mapping] 
  • Part 4: Identifying and Explaining Mitigation Strategies [Exercise 4: Limiting Degree of Access] [Exercise 5: Reducing                Likelihood of Contamination]         [Exercise 6: Considering Existing Practices]
  • Part 4: Mitigation Strategies- Exercises (continued)
  • Part 5: The FDA IA Rule
  • Part 6: Food Defense Plans
  • Part 7: Implementing the Food Defense Plan; Re-Analysis of the Food Defense Plan
  • Wrap Up and Adjourn

Days 3 & 4- 8.5 hours      Building Food Defense Plans- Group Work Sessions      12:45 pm to 5:00 pm , Each Day
  • Review Session: Day 1 Materials- Principles, IA Regulation, Vulnerability Assessments, Mitigation Strategies, MS Management, Reanalysis 
  • Group Work Sessions:   Food Defense Plans
  • Vulnerability Assessment- Team Presentations
  • Mitigation Strategy – Team Presentations
  • Management of Mitigation Strategies- Team Presentations
  • Wrap Up, Critique, & Adjourn
Register- Practical Food Defense Workshop
fsnwllc.com
Twitter
Facebook
Website