Proceedings of the 2023 Mississippi Water Resources Conference

Year: 2023 Authors: Abdallah-Ruiz A., Anderson J.F., Bond R.F., Atwill E.R., Silva J.L.

The proposed US FDA water rule subpart under the Produce safety Rule of FSMA will require an annual assessment of the agricultural water system of covered farms by the grower or other party to identify, evaluate the risks associated with their water system, and develop mitigation strategies to minimize water contamination. The assessment should include evaluation of the location and nature of the water source, water distribution system, type of application method for water, and the time between the last direct application and harvest, and degree of protection of the system from contamination. The latter includes assessing the impact of other users of the water system, animal impacts, adjacent and nearby land uses, and any other factors. The UC Davis Western Center for Food Safety developed an assessment tool which has been modified to the region's reality with the aid of Mississippi State University. In addition, the US FDA developed an online/offline water system assessment. We will also discuss the application of these tools in a pilot study in a small, exempted (from the rule) farm in Mississippi.