Reedley College handles food safety in one-day class
Line supervisors, facility managers and other food safety personnel from local packinghouses updated their food safety knowledge during a one-day course offered by Reedley College.
On Saturday, April 19, Reedley College held its first Food Safety 1 class with approximately 50 people, from more than 10 different packinghouses. The class covered the latest information and regulations dealing with food safety and included three speakers: David Botkin from Sun Valley Packing; Juan Muñiz, director of operations at PrimusLabs.com; and Christopher Valadez, director of environmental and regulatory affairs from the California Grape and Tree Fruit League. In his address to the class, Muñiz said the best way to protect food and workers’ health is through “training, training, training.” Training like this Reedley College course may become even more important, and perhaps mandatory, as legislation about food safety is being considered.
Ballantine Produce with locations in Reedley and Sanger had 10 employees attending the event. “We’re here to help implement and maintain our food safety,” said Tina McAndrews, cold storage manager at Ballantine Produce. David Archuleta, the food safety manager from Mountain View Cold Storage in Reedley, said it was important for him “to learn about the growing needs of food safety, the regulations, and recent changes.”
Participants received a certificate of participation for themselves and one for their employer. With the recent breakouts of E. coli in spinach, local fruit packinghouses have to make sure their employees are trained in the latest food safety.
Reedley College plans to offer the class again in spring 2009.
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