The Center for Produce Safety’s 15th Annual Research Symposium will take on produce safety’s top research questions when the event gets underway June 18-19 in Denver.
New this year, findings from newly completed research projects will be presented within the overall “State of the Science” on the topic and include greater context to help industry and other stakeholders understand how to more safely grow, harvest, pack, process, store and retail fresh produce, according to a news release. The agenda will also feature four 30-minute produce safety “master classes.”
“If you haven’t attended one of our Research Symposia, this is the year you want to start. If you’ve attended before, you are in for something special,” Joe Pezzini, CPS board chair and senior director of agricultural operations for Taylor Farms, said in the release. “This year’s Research Symposium will cover the science essentials of fresh produce food safety. We have pulled out all the stops for our fifteenth-anniversary event.”
Much of the two-day agenda will focus on presenting the “State of the Science” on produce safety’s most important topics, the release said. “State of the Science” topics relevant to every industry sector are planned, including:
- Agricultural water management.
- Animal intrusion and related pathogen transfer.
- Produce safety process control as it relates to wash systems, compost and soil amendments.
- Environmental pathogens and their control.
- Controlled environment agriculture.
- Pathogen detection, persistence, growth and movement.
- Emerging use of genomics.
Sprinkled in between the “State of the Science” sessions, expert speakers will lead 30-minute “master classes” on four produce-safety topics, from how clean is clean to outbreak investigations, the release said.
“We asked industry members from across the supply chain to identify topics they would most like to learn about. Chances are high that at least a of few of these topics are on your mind, too,” Pezzini said. “When we’ve held sessions like this in the past, we could hear a pin drop the audience was so tuned in. You’ll take away essential knowledge, and advice you can put to work immediately in your operation.”
For more information about sessions and speakers, and to register, visit the Events page of the Center for Produce Safety’s website. Take advantage of early-bird discounts by registering by May 31, when industry members can register for $725. From June 1-19, including on-site registration, the industry rate will be $825.
“While we will publish key learnings after the event, being there in person — with the chance for peer networking and direct conversations with researchers — is simply invaluable,” Pezzini said.
