January 8, 2014

The Committee outlined the Peer Review Process stating that the Omelet example is being revised to focus on temperature rather than on coagulation of the egg; the Sanitation Chapter, including zoning, is almost complete; and a module on Supplier Control will be created.  It was also stated that a comprehensive list of references has been compiled by the Sanitation Working Group and those references should eventually appear on the FSPCA Website.  The progress of the Continuation Committee was reviewed including putting the final touches on the Business Plan, issues connected with translating material to Spanish and Chinese, certificate security issues, instructor criteria, and the development of an appeals process.  Topics revolving around outreach included a discussion regarding SME's, trainers, and outreach providers.

February 12, 2014

The Executive Committee discussed the process of adding resources to the FSPCA website, which will require Steering Committee approval. The Editorial Subcommittee reported that the progress of the chapters is on schedule and they expect to have all chapters ready for presentation at the Shakedown May 28-30th. The Shakedown email invitation and list of invitees were shared with the Steering Committee and it was reiterated that the Shakedown is a test run, not a pilot. Pilots will be scheduled at later TBD dates. The Continuation Subcommittee noted that they meet every other Friday and are focusing their efforts on development of the protocol, course review criteria, instructor criteria and appeals process. A draft protocol is expected to be shared at the next Steering Committee meeting. A recap of Animal Foods Subcommittee activities was provided, including 1) using livestock feed as the training example, 2) pet foods commodity examples, such as animal byproducts, being added in the appendix and 3) the establishment of an animal food editorial committee, consisting of six members, who are reviewing the human food chapters and making the necessary adjustments for animal foods. In other business, an Executive Committee meeting was requested to discuss suggestions for Working Group engagement and Steering Committee membership. The next Steering Committee meeting is scheduled for March 12, 2014 (CDT).

March 12, 2014

The Executive Committee discussed participation of FSPCA Committee and Subcommittee members noting active participation is the key to quorum and forward progress. To proactively relay information to all members, quarterly webinars were suggested. Additionally, Outreach to connect with Working Group members to request development of additional food plans, using the omelet plan as an example. The Editorial Subcommittee shared a curriculum chapter progress report and indicated they are well positioned to have materials in hand for the Shakedown session planned for May 28-30. Chapters 1-5 have been peer reviewed. Remaining chapters have not been sent out for peer review yet because the Editorial Subcommittee is still discussing some of the important chapters. Change management is easier when the Subcommittee agrees that the chapters are ready to go. Input from the Steering Committee regarding timing for peer review was welcomed. The Continuation Subcommittee reported development of sub-processes, such as the FSPCA Instructor Responsibilities Process, among others. Spanish translations continue to be researched. Average translations costs and appropriate entities with extensive scientific translation experience were relayed. SME and Instructor Candidate application forms were shared and edits discussed. The Animal Foods Subcommittee continues to compile a list of volunteers although there is no need for volunteers at the current time. In other business, the Editorial and Continuation Subcommittees are to determine the need for a face-to-face Steering Committee meeting in summer 2014.

April 9, 2014

Robin Kalinowski was introduced, and welcomed to listen in on the FSPCA Steering Committee calls, as the new representative of the Sprout Safety Alliance. Robin replaces Stephen Grove in this capacity. Both Robin Kalinowski (SSA) and Betsy Bihn (PSA) have been invited to participate in future Steering Committee conference calls to facilitate interactions among the FDA funded FSMA related alliances. The Executive Committee update included implementing a quarterly FSPCA webinar, with the first webinar slated for Monday, May12th at 10am CDT. The webinar will update stakeholders on the progress of the Alliance and will be open to everyone, however, space is limited. The Editorial Subcommittee reported continued progress on the curriculum and expects to have the entire draft curriculum ready for presentation at the Shakedown, scheduled for May 28-30, 2014. The Continuation and Outreach Subcommittees continue to refine the SME and FSPCA Lead Instructor forms as well as the protocol. The interest in being a SME or FSPCA Lead Instructor is high. Name and contact information is being collected and candidates will be contacted when train-the-trainer courses become available. The Animal Foods Subcommittee reported the comment period for the proposed Animal PC Rule closed on March 31st and over 1,600 submissions were received. The CVM is busy reviewing those comments. Lastly, due to the Shakedown at the end of May, the June face-to-face Steering Committee meeting will be pushed back until August (date TBD). Presentation of refined material from the Shakedown is planned for this face-to-face meeting.

May 14, 2014

Invited guests, Betsy Bihn and Gretchen Walls, of the Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) provided an overview of the Alliance and invited members to view the website (producesafetyalliance.cornell.edu) for updates and more detail. The FSPCA Webinar held its first quarterly webinar on May 12, 2014. The committee brainstormed ideas of how to better market the webinars to target audiences. The Continuation and Outreach Subcommittees shared SME and Instructor Application forms as well as the Instructor Information Steps narrative. Comments and suggestions were requested of the Steering Committee. The Editorial Subcommittee reported on details of the Shakedown. 35 attendees from industry, state and federal government as well as academia will be attending. The subcommittee noted peer reviewers are needed for Supplier Verification, Sanitation and Allergen Control Plan, Validation and Verification, Record Keeping and Recall. A face-to-face meeting will take place in the Washington, DC area on August 13 & 14. Feedback from the Shakedown will be shared; content and slides will be reviewed.

June 11, 2014

Shakedown Recap: The meeting was viewed as a valuable exercise in that most chapters were viewed as being right on target by participants, with some chapters needing adjustments to reduce complexity. For some chapters, certain participants viewed chapters as being too technical, while others viewed them as being not technical enough, demonstrating the interests and perspectives of different trainers. Reorganization of the material is needed to reduce complexity, focusing on what is required and keeping information that can help achieve the goal.

The Continuation Subcommittee will continue to revise the Instructor Protocol and SME/ Lead Instructor forms based on comments collected during the Shakedown.

The next face-to-face Steering Committee meeting scheduled for August is being rescheduled due to a conflict. New dates are TBD.

September 9-10, 2014

Swanson reviewed general observations from Shakedown, and specific comments and actions to resolve some of the themes identified from Shakedown participants. The draft curriculum was modified to change the order of chapters and sections to improve the flow. Required elements are more clearly identified, but useful elements were retained to make participants aware of options that help to manage food safety issues. Feedback from the Steering Committee will be incorporated into the next revision, which will also need work when the Supplemental Notice is released.

The Editorial Committee discussed the need to reinstate the Web Presence Subcommittee and members were identified. Monthly meetings will be scheduled to decide on what is needed on, and from, the FSPCA website. A website wish list was discussed and ideas captured.

Kathy Gombas presented information on the National Technical Assistance Network. and shared the content for the SME Online Application form. Comments were welcomed and captured. A team of volunteers was identified to develop the SME selection criteria.

The Continuation Subcommittee discuss assessments, the certificate of completion, and reviewed the overview of the instructor led process.

The Animal Foods Subcommittee updated the committee on their progress and timeline.

The Working Group on Food Categories and Representative Processing discussed standardization of the process for approving food safety plans for each of the model foods as well as the need for development of additional food safety plan examples.

October 8, 2014

The Executive Committee reported that the Website Subcommittee has been reengaged to address the future needs of the FSPCA website. The subcommittee is scheduled to meet October 16, 2014 via conference call.

The Editorial Subcommittee is busy revising the curriculum based on feedback from the Shakedown and the release of the supplement. A curriculum outline is being developed and will be posted on the FSPCA website for download.

The Exercise & Example Working Group shared “Breakouts for PC Training” document.  The goal of all exercises is to help students learn implementation for their own individual situation. Feedback was requested by the Working Group.

The Continuation Subcommittee focused on the timeline and the key date of April 2015 for the first train-the-trainer session. The subcommittee is finalizing the SME application process and focusing on instructor application and criteria, complaint and appeals processes as well as the process for acceptance of other courses.

The Animal Food Subcommittee reported that training sessions for Animal Foods would not happen until after the final rule is published. The first session is expected in Fall 2015 with two more session slated for 2016.

The Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) noted that their curriculum is being updated based on the supplement. Pilots to be scheduled in the near future. The Alliance is hosting a produce supplemental topic webinar on October 23rd.

The Working Group on Food Categories and Representative Processing is incorporating feedback on the first three food models with plans to develop an additional three models before the December face-to-face meeting.

The Steering Committee will meet face-to-face in Washington, DC on December 9-10, 2014. Location TBD.

November 12, 2014

Henry Turlington (AFIA), Pat Tovey (PFI) and Guy Skinner (FDA) were nominated and approved as Steering Committee members. John Larkin’s (University of Minnesota, formerly FDA) continuation on the committee was approved as well.

The Web Presence Subcommittee met to discuss the objectives for the FSPCA website in regard to database and the Q&A repository. The subcommittee is currently reviewing vendors for this purpose and findings will be presented to the Steering Committee in December.

The Editorial Subcommittee continues to revise chapters based on the supplement. In parallel, IFPTI is developing the Instructor’s manual based on those revised chapters.

The Continuation Subcommittee has updated the timeline, continues to draft evaluation questions for the course, is researching instructor development courses and finalizing the FSE and Instructor Application forms.

The Animal Food Subcommittee indicated that once the comment period closes, the subcommittee will be able to focus their efforts on editing the training curriculum and creating the Hazard Guide.

The Produce Safety Alliance will be hosting train-the-trainer in December 2014 and grower training in January 2015.

The goal of the Sprout Safety Alliance is to finish the curriculum by the end of the year (2014) and plans to work with IFSH, IFPTI and AFDO on the certificate protocol.

In other business the need for a date and topics of the next FSPCA webinar were brought up. The Executive Committee will discuss further and report back to the Steering Committee.

The next Steering Committee meeting will be held face-to-face at the Army and Navy Club in DC on December 9-10.

December 9-10, 2014

The FSPCA Steering Committee and Subcommittee members, as well as other invited guests, met in Washington, DC on December 9-10, 2014. Future face-to-face meeting dates were determined for May and December 2015.

Executive Committee presented a draft Policies and Procedures document for the election, replacement and rotation of Steering Committee members. The committee will further review and revise the document and present to the Steering Committee for comments and approval.

Editorial Subcommittee provided an update on chapter progress and solicited feedback on a number of items. The group agreed on the following ; 1) dividing the Food Safety Hazards into two chapters, 2) a glossary of PC terminology will reside on the FSPCA website (volunteers to submit definitions for that glossary), 3) peer review of Human Foods chapters can occur in parallel with chapters released to Animal Food before review is done, 4) Swanson will seamlessly integrate exercises into curriculum, and 5) the curriculum, exercises and models need to be tested before a true “train the trainer” session can be conducted, thus a “Pilot” will be held in April 2015 to evaluate timing and flow of all class materials.

Animal Food Subcommittee provided a brief update on the progress of the subcommittee including, 1) chapters continuing to be redlined with the goal of adding animal food information and drafting example food safety plans in early 2015, 2) continued development of hazard literature, and 3) planned face-to-face meetings in January 2015 and mid-2015. A request for more Animal Food presence on the FSPCA website was indicated.

Continuation Subcommittee shared samples for instructor manual cover designs, certificates, PowerPoint templates and walked the group through an online demonstration of the Learning Management System (LMS). The group provided feedback on each item and also requested the subcommittee re-look at future budget planning for Alliance self-sustainability.

Outreach Subcommittee reported on progress of outreach to University Deans and Directors in the form of a webinar, planned for late January 2015.

The Technical Assistance Network needs are evolving and a revised business requirements document will be required. The Executive Committee and Website Subcommittee are to meet to discuss details and next steps.

The larger group separated into 4 smaller breakouts to review and provide comments on four food training models. The Food Training Models Working Group will have short weekly calls to complete the food training model plans by February 1, 2015.