MANHATTAN, KANSAS, U.S. — Just as there are standards in food safety for human consumption, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also sets regulations for safe animal feed. In an effort to convey an in-depth understanding of the FDA’s regulations, the IGP Institute hosted 20 participants in the NGFA-KSU Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) training.

This training was held Nov. 5-7 and allowed participants to learn about the fundamentals and manufacturing principles of food safety and how to create an effective food safety plan.

“This three-day course is where people from the industry come to learn about new regulations around the Food Safety Modernization Act,” said Carlos Campabadal, feed manufacturing and grain quality management outreach specialist. “This course focuses on improving overall food safety.”

Participants also get the chance to complete a certificate training from the Food Safety Preventative Controls Alliance (FSPCA), as well as an additional Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HAACP) training. In order to receive certification, participants had to fully demonstrate the requirements by Preventative Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI) per the FDA’s regulations.

Eric McMillan, director of commodity risk management at Cactus Feeders, said it is important to him to have an understanding of how to meet all food regulations.

“It was beneficial to learn what we’re doing at our site to make sure we’re meeting all of the regulations to provide safe food to cattle,” McMillan said. “I now have the knowledge to help with our food safety plan to help train our employees that are on-site at the feed mill.”

The curriculum for this course was developed by the Food Safety Preventative Controls Alliance in order to effectively convey an accurate understanding for food safety standards.