Date: Thursday, April 6, 2023
Conference Time: 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Location: Bell Farms, 1552 Riverside Drive, Auburn, ME
Cost: Free, includes lunch (donations accepted)
2 pesticide applicator recertification credits
This workshop is hosted by Chris Callahan, UVM Extension Associate Professor: Agricultural Engineering; the Maine Dept. of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry (DACF); the University of Maine Cooperative Extension; and Bell Farms.
We will be working with a green bean sorter, harvest totes and worktables, and possibly a potato wash/pack line. Bring a chair if you don’t want to sit on pallets. Bring a clipboard. Dress for packing house temperatures of around 55F.
Agenda:
10:00 – Sanitation issues for vegetable crops with Robson Machado, University of Maine
10:45 – Hygienic design evaluation and checklist, and introduction to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for produce safety with Chris Callahan, University of Vermont
12:00 – Lunch
1:00 – Small group hands-on evaluation of equipment utilizing the checklist and considering using an SOP with Chris Callahan, Robson Machado, and Lindsay Werner (DACF).
2:00 – Full group discussion
3:00 – Adjourn