California Cantaloupe Farmers are Committed to Keeping your Melon Sunny, Sweet and Safe!
If you love California cantaloupe, you’ll be happy to know that all cantaloupes grown in California are subject to a mandatory food safety program. That’s right – in addition to all the cantaloupe news, recipes and inspiration, the California Cantaloupe Advisory Board (CCAB) also plays a key role in keeping your cantaloupe safe!
The CCAB has been in operation since 1988 and it has always been funded by growers of cantaloupe in California. Until 2012, the Board’s activities included research, promotion and quality assurance. But starting in 2012, California cantaloupe growers unanimously voted to add a statewide mandatory food safety inspection program to ensure that all California cantaloupe is being produced using the safest methods possible.
The CCAB program includes a set of required food safety practices, based on over 25 years of University research. These practices must be followed in California cantaloupe fields, packing houses and cold storage facilities. Several times during the year, members of the CCAB are audited by government officials to verify the required practices are being followed. The audits are administered by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). During each audit, CDFA officials check to make sure producers are in 100 percent compliance with all required food safety practices. During a field audit, government officials will check to make sure 97 different food safety checkpoints are being followed, and a packinghouse or cooler audit has 118 checkpoints. If the producer fails to meet any of these checkpoints, they must correct the situation immediately or they will be re-inspected to verify the problem has been corrected.
The CCAB requirements deal with several important food safety areas including worker hygiene, field sanitation and employee training. Growers are required to test any water used on the farming operations and they must complete a food safety plan with procedures in place to trace cantaloupes to the field where they were grown. In packing houses, additional standards are in place requiring that any water interacting with cantaloupe or food processing surfaces meet Environmental Protection Agency drinking standards.
The growers who are members of CCAB are committed to making sure the cantaloupes you buy for your family aren’t just delicious, but safe too. A list of all CCAB certified members is available here. You can learn much more about the people behind this program by reading stories about CCAB members. As an example, meet Matt Maring, who is just one of the many CCAB members working to make sure your cantaloupe is always sunny, sweet and safe.
