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Resources by Alexis Hamilton

Title Available As Summary Date ID Author
Hazards and Risks: What is the Difference and How to Evaluate for Your Operation, a Beginners Guide Jul 12, 2022 FST-428NP
Managing Salmonella Contamination Risk in Retail Food Facilities Jan 24, 2023 FST-442NP
A Beginner’s Guide to Developing a Food Recall Plan Feb 3, 2023 FST-443NP
Common Questions When Developing an Environmental Monitoring Program for a Food Facility Mar 9, 2023 FST-445NP
Food Safety in the Packinghouse May 15, 2023 FST-446NP
Identifying Trends in Training Needs of Food Safety Professionals in Virginia May 26, 2023 FST-448NP
Effective Communication of Cider Sensory Quality: A White Paper
The purpose of this white paper is to convey findings of a large Hard Cider Sensory Project conducted from 2020-2022, with realistic applications for how best to communicate the sensory quality of cider. Recommendations made in this white paper are based on the most current research in the field initiated by researchers at Virginia Tech and Cornell University. These sensory-focused research projects were funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to support growth of the hard cider industry particularly in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic United States.
Sep 6, 2023 FST-455NP
Writing a Food Safety Plan: Resources for Conducting a Hazard Analysis
This fact sheet describes what food safety hazards are, who is required to conduct a hazard analysis, the purpose of hazard analysis, why conducting a hazard analysis is important, the components of a hazard analysis, resources to help evaluate hazards, and a novel worksheet to guide a food producer through the hazard analysis process.
Apr 23, 2024 FST-747NP
Hazard Analysis Worksheet v1.2
The Hazard Analysis Worksheet to go along with Writing a Food Safety Plan: Resources for Conducting a Hazard Analysis (FST-474).
Apr 24, 2024 FST-747-ANP
FSMA Sanitary Transportation Rule: A Guide for Industry
The Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food Rule, often simply referred to as The Sanitary Transportation Rule, is enforced by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with the goal of protecting food during transport. This rule is one of the seven foundational rules of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act. Contamination can occur at any point in the food supply chain, and actions must be implemented to mitigate these risks at all stages, including transport. Because of this, the Sanitary Transportation Rule contains transportation requirements to avoid potential food safety risks that may occur.
FST-477NP
Do I Really Need to Wash That? A Guide to Handling Fresh Produce at Home
Washing produce is an important step to keeping your family healthy. Since produce is grown in close contact with the ground, bacterial contamination may be introduced from animals, soil, and water. Produce may also be handled as it moves through the supply chain to the consumer. Washing produce can remove potential bacterial contamination or soil. It can be hard to know how and when to wash your produce, and there is a lot of information out there, so this publication provides important considerations to think about (a guide to help).
Jun 5, 2024 FST-478NP
Interpreting Water Activity Lab Results for Food Producers
This is a fact sheet explaining water activity, how water activity is related to food safety/spoilage/shelf-life, defining water activity-controlled foods, determining if a product is classified as water activity-controlled, working with the Food Producer Technical Assistance Network to conduct and interpret water activity testing, and recommendations for the frequency of water activity testing.
Jul 5, 2024 FST-485NP
Survival Strategies Used by Salmonella to Persist in Dry and Low-Moisture Processing Environments
Salmonella contamination in dry and low-moisture food processing environments is a food safety concern recognized by the FDA. For a microorganism to grow in a food processing environment, there must be enough available moisture for the organism to use. In a dry or low-moisture processing environment, there are typically not enough consistent sources of moisture for microorganisms to grow; however, Salmonella has shown the ability to adapt to this low-moisture stress and survive for long periods of time through accumulation of osmoprotectants, up-regulation of outer membrane porins, alteration of gene expression, rRNA degradation, entering a viable but not culturable state, filamentation, and biofilm formation.
Aug 14, 2024 FST-487NP