Gov. Tom Wolf has announced Pennsylvania’s produce growers will receive assistance in meeting expectations under the Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act thanks to a $6.3 million grant awarded to the state’s Department of Agriculture.

The funding, spread across five years, gives the department resources to implement a produce safety system, develop and provide education and outreach, and to develop programs to address the specific and unique needs of the growers in Pennsylvania’s farming communities.

The cooperative agreement comes after the development of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule, which establishes science-based minimum standards for the safe growing, harvesting, packing and holding of fruits and vegetables grown for human consumption.

The department currently provides voluntary good handling practices and good agricultural practices audits to growers who need a third-party inspection to meet market demands for food safety and quality.

The FSMA inspections will expand this to all non-exempt growers across Pennsylvania.

“We have been working on a plan to implement FSMA for more than a year and a half,” said Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. “We’ve been reaching out to growers, giving them the heads-up and addressing their concerns since before the rule was finalized in November 2015.

“These new resources will help us to implement that plan to ensure producers and growers understand this new system for keeping our food supply safe.”

The cooperative agreement will allow the department to triple staffing in the Bureau of Food Safety and Laboratory Services Fruit and Vegetable Division to nine full-time staff.

Current staff and newly-hired staff will be trained before they can perform audits and inspections.

They will also work with Penn State Extension staff to educate growers and ensure compliance.

Producers will first be audited, where department staff will review the facility and work with producers to identify any corrections and improvements that need to be made in order to pass the FSMA inspection.

Staff will return later to perform the official inspection on the facility.

“FSMA is a giant step to further improve the safety of our food supply,” said Redding. “Pennsylvania’s producers take this commitment seriously and because of that we all benefit.”

For more information, visit eatsafepa.com.