The State Of The Plate: Food Protection And Safety Subject Of Uri Conference

KINGSTON, R.I. – April 8, 2025 – The University of Rhode Island’s Cooperative Extension is hosting this year’s 31st yearly Rhode Island Food Safety Task Force Conference on Thursday, April 24. The conference, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. astatine nan Radisson Hotel successful Warwick, will supply attendees pinch accusation connected nan Food Safety Modernization Act’s Food Traceability Rule and really it applies to nutrient businesses and operations. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act requires nan Food and Drug Administration to designate high-risk foods for which further recordkeeping requirements are needed to protect nationalist health. The constituent Food Traceability Rule intends to show and modulate foods which tin airs a nationalist wellness threat if contaminated and distributed, spreading items nary 1 wants to spot connected nan menu: E. coli, Norovirus, Salmonella aliases more.

Conference attendees will study really to comply pinch requirements connected nutrient traceability successful nan nutrient industry. (FDA image)

URI’s nutrient information master Nicole Richard says nan Food Traceability Rule protects nutrient information and protects nationalist health; URI Cooperative Extension tin thief business owners adhere to nan rules successful spot to protect consumers. 

“Having this database and nan traceability rules successful spot increases consequence successful nan arena of an outbreak,” Richard says, “reducing unwellness by decreasing consequence time. Traceability recordkeeping requirements successful regulations use to anyone who manufactures, processes, packs, aliases holds foods connected nan Food Traceability List. The last norm requires a higher grade of coordination betwixt members of nan nutrient manufacture than has been required successful nan past. Entities must beryllium successful compliance: we’re present to thief them do that, for nationalist health.”

The Food Traceability List calls for recordkeeping for respective foods, whether sold individually aliases arsenic an ingredient, which rank precocious for consequence of foodborne unwellness successful lawsuit of contamination:

The afloat list, pinch specifications connected circumstantial nutrient categories and distinctions, tin beryllium recovered connected FDA.gov. 

Rhode Island’s nutrient information specialist

The convention is led by Richard, a nutrient information interrogator pinch URI Cooperative Extension. Richard has much than 20 years of acquisition processing nutrient information resources and programming for businesses and consumers done nan University’s Food Safety Research and Education Program. She is simply a frequently-requested master connected issues of sushi safety, location nutrient safety, and different eating matters. 

As chair of nan Rhode Island Food Safety Task Force, Richard will beryllium joined astatine nan convention by speakers from nan Rhode Island Department of Health and FMI-the Food Industry Association, discussing nutrient information progress, Rhode Island programs and projects centered connected nutrient protection, nationalist nutrient codification updates, really to comply pinch nan nutrient traceability rule, and recordkeeping requirements.

Advance registration for nan convention is required. The costs to be is $10 (non-refundable; free for students). All are welcome.

To study much astir nan URI Food Safety Education program, aliases get connected nan email database for early events, interaction Nicole Richard astatine URI astatine nicolerichard@uri.edu aliases sojourn www.uri.edu/CoopExt.