NOGALES, Az. – As one of the arguably most important inputs in growing fresh produce, having a company’s comments heard on the proposed FSMA Produce Safety Rule’s Agricultural Water Guidelines it vital. And to that effect, the Texas International Produce Association (TIPA) and the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA) want to make sure that the voices of the international community have that same opportunity.
Comments in the Federal Register for this rule must be submitted in English. Yet this ruling will impact how millions of pounds of fresh produce are governed with regards to the usage of agricultural water. It is safe to assume that foreign growers and similar entities would have comments in their native language, especially in Latin America.
“Our associations are familiar with the challenges that can arise when communicating in a different language,” said Dante Galeazzi, president/CEO of TIPA. “To help Spanish speakers get their comments provided to the Federal Register, TIPA & FPAA have partnered to coordinate translation services for those companies, using a list of volunteer food safety subject-matter-experts to have those comments translated into English.”
“The volume of fresh produce that arrives from areas such as Mexico has grown over the course of the last decade. And no one can argue the importance of food safety,” says Lance Jungmeyer, president/CEO of FPAA. “We want producers and handlers of Mexican fresh fruits and vegetables to be able to express their concerns or support for the proposed rule. This is significant because these are the same people on the ground in those countries, who need to share with our industries and governments their opinions about the challenges posed by certain regulations.”
To send comments in Spanish for translation, please contact either Georgina Felix at the FPAA (gfelix@freshfrommexico.com) or Kim Avenado at TIPA (kim@texipa.org). From there, the associations will help funnel the comments to a network of experts, who will then work with the commenter to move those comments into English – for FREE. Once those comments are translated, the commenter can then post their comments into the Federal Register for consideration by FDA for final rulemaking.
Comments are due by April 5th, so TIPA & FPAA ask that all requests be in no later than March 31st. To view the proposed rule or to submit comments on the official docket, please visit https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FDA-2021-N-0471/document
About the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas:
Founded in 1944 in Nogales, Arizona, the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas has grown to become one of the most influential agricultural groups in the United States. Today, the FPAA provides a powerful voice for improvement and sustainability by serving the needs of more than 100 North American companies involved in the growth, harvest, marketing, import, and distribution of produce.
About the Texas International Produce Association:
The Texas International Produce Association (TIPA) was founded in 1942 by a group of industry leaders who shared a vision to expand the Texas produce industry. These industry pioneers understood that by working together they would be able to reap greater benefits. TIPA’s member companies include growers, shippers, importers, distributors, material and service providers. Today, the organization represents over 350 companies throughout the fresh fruit and vegetable supply chain and speaks on behalf of the $9 billion in fresh produce that is either grown in Texas or considers Texas its first point of arrival for domestic distribution.
