# Path B Continued Development and Implementation of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Produce Safety Program

> **NIH FDA U2F** · PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE · 2022 · $358,289

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) is applying for Path B, Regulatory
Funding Band 4 and Education and Inventory Funding Band 6 of PAR-21-174 to
continue the development and implementation of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule (PSR)
among PA’s produce farms. Under FDA authority, PDA educates, regulates and enforces
the Produce Safety Rule under 21 CFR Part 112 and the FDA Food Safety Modernization
Act (FSMA). This project is designed to encourage the safe production of fresh produce
and promote understanding and compliance with the requirements of the PSR.
Inspections are conducted following the NASDA/FDA guidance document Standardized
Approach to Produce Farm Inspections. Program development, infrastructure and
implementation were major components of the previous 5-year Cooperative Agreement
and PA continues to build on this previous work to align with the expectations within
the new Cooperative Agreement. PA will provide opportunities for outreach, education
and technical assistance on the PSR to produce farms. The goal is to provide outreach,
education and/or technical assistance to 5,294 produce farms in Pennsylvania by June
30, 2026. Moreover, the target is to conduct 150 OFRR visits in year 1. We plan to have a
complete verified inventory of produce farms in PA by June 30, 2026. We aim to
develop a complete and accurate farm inventory of 6,214 verified produce farms by June
30, 2026. We plan to complete initial inspections of our verified large and small covered
farms during the 2021 growing season. Initial inspections of very small farms began in
January of 2021 and will continue throughout the upcoming funding period. According
to the target expectations set in PAR-21-174, our goal is to conduct routine inspections
equal to 20% of the current non-exempt covered produce farms in Pennsylvania on an
annual basis. Information sharing with FDA will continue for purposes of the
Compliance and Enforcement Program. We also plan to communicate and deploy, when
needed, produce safety staff for all produce related incidents as part of our Produce
Related Event Response Planning and Implementation Program. Overall, the funding
from PAR-21-174 will focus on quality and national consistency to ensure the
Department is protecting the public health of consumers by minimizing the risk of
foodborne illness associated with produce covered under the Produce Safety Rule.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10439701
- **Project number:** 5U2FFD007441-02
- **Recipient organization:** PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
- **Principal Investigator:** Stefanie M Smith
- **Activity code:** U2F (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** FDA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $358,289
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-07-01 → 2026-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10439701

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10439701, Path B Continued Development and Implementation of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Produce Safety Program (5U2FFD007441-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10439701. Licensed CC0.

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