The New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance (NHSFA) will be formed to focus on foodsafety issues in the state. The alliance will be multidisciplinary with membersrepresenting government, academia and the regulated food industry. The first goal of theNHSFA will be to sponsor a series of workshops to educate food safety stakeholders inthe state on the FDA 2005 Food Code. These workshops are necessary as the stateworks to adopt the FDA 2005 Food Code as part of New Hampshire Rules for theSanitary Production and Distibution of Food He-P 2300. To allow for a smoothtransition when the Food Code is adopted, the workshops would present a forum for allparties to come together to better understand the new regulations. The intent is to keepthe New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance active after the Food Code workshops to planfurther meetings or conferences involving food safety issues of interest.
New Hampshire Rules for the Sanitary Production and Distribution of Food He-P 2300 is used by The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health Services, Food Protection Section (FPS) to regulate food establishments that it licenses. FPS is working to revise He-P 2300 to incorporate the FDA 2005 Food Code by reference. Adoption of the FDA 2005 Food Code means significant change to the rules. For a successful transition to the new rules, there is a need for training for all stakeholders-government, educators and the regulated food industry. To fill this need the New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance will be formed as an advisory group for planning and a sponsor of workshops across the state to educate these stakeholders on the changes surrounding the adoption of the 2005 Food Code. FPS will be responsible for assembling the New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance. In addition to FPS, other government groups will be asked to join the alliance such as the 16 self-inspecting communities and the NH Department of Agriculture. The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health will also be contacted to participate in the New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance to ensure the appropriate involvement of women, minorities and persons with disabilities in planning the workshops. Membership will also be sought from the New Hampshire Grocers Association, New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association, the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension and the food regulated industry. The New Hampshire Safe Food Alliance will plan and moderate the workshops. Five to six workshops will be planned throughout the state at sites such as conference centers or municipal buildings. The expected number of attendees per site would be 50-100 persons. The objective of the workshops will be to explain the significant changes and issues in the revised rules. The format of the workshops will be interactive whereby there will be a lecture and distribution of educational materials followed by a question and answer segment. Due to the importance of identifying and addressing food safety issues in New Hampshire, the intent is to keep the New Hampshire Food Safe Alliance active after the 2005 Food Code Workshops. A way to do this would be to hold quarterly meeting for members and to organize an annual training conference on an emerging food safety or defense issues. Possible topics to be addressed include Capacity and resource needs, Outbreak coordination and investigations, Information sharing, Food safety and defense education.
