Safe, Small and Local:
Feeding Alaska through Farmer’s Markets, Fairs, Bazaars and Other Direct Sales Venues

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s Food Safety and Sanitation Program invites you to a public meeting on the regulations and guidelines for people who wish to produce and sell food products at local markets and how to safely bring those products to market. What type of permit do you need? Where can your products be produced? What requirements are necessary to maintain a permit? These questions and more will be addressed at the meeting.

We heard an outstanding presentation on bio-products at one of Sustainable Seafood Summit last year and a rousing testimonial about the Naturland's label.  We wanted to learn more.

Naturland's promotes organic agriculture and aquaculture the world over and its 46,000 members make it one of the major organic farming associations.              As a forward-looking association, Naturland's main concern is the sustainable use of resources, in ecological, social, and economical respect.

Thank you Ron Klein, State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Health - Food Safety for making us aware -- The US Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service offers a new service specifically for small businesses. The FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov has a new page designed specifically for small and very small plants.  At the main menu, under BROWSE by Audience, click on Business and Partners to view HAACP and other materials and regulations; register for meetings; locate a FSIS office; review frequently asked questions and answers and other information.  Ask FSIS, another new Web site feature, provides answers to inspection-related questions. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/
Leave us comments below if you think it helps.

Interested in maximizing yield and shelf stability of your wild Alaska Salmon?   The Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and Global Food Collaborative will be offering a two, one-hour webinars (internet-based) scheduled for 9:00a.m. Alaska Standard Time, March 28th and April 11th.   The event is specifically designed for Alaska's harvesters and direct marketers who are seeking to raise the bar in the quality, safety and yield (shelf-stability) of their Alaska salmon products.   Participants are required to be Alaska licensed harvester or licensed harvester/processors and will need access to a computer with internet connection and a telephone. The March 28th and April 11th webinar registration is now full and closed.  To be put you on a wait list for this or future webinars - simply email us your name, email address, phone number and region of Alaska and we will notify you of future offerings.

Helping to Ensure Food Safety for the Past 10 Years, The Food Safety & Security Summit is the industry’s top gathering place for specialized education that you won’t find anywhere else as you learn from industry experts with real world experience. Register now and join thousands of food safety professionals this March 17-18 in the heart of food safety regulation – Washington DC.

The State of Alaska's Food Safety and Sanitation program is pleased to announce that Tagalog tests are now available in hard copy and on the website. Unfortunately, the online test prep (video) is not yet available, but it's on their list for the next time we update the system.

Vietnamese tests are available in hard copy and on the website; however, a food worker taking the Vietnamese test online must change their Windows settings to allow for Asian languages in order for the test to show properly. Vietnamese test prep (video) is still available online.

The Food Worker Testing Site is at: http://alaska.state.gegov.com/foodworker/ If you need hard copies of tests in either language, please let Linda Adams (1-87-SAFE FOOD or 907-269-2008) know how many you need and the relative urgency with which you need them. We also want to remind you that the $10 charge for the food worker cards is still being waived (yes, you read it right - it's still FREE) and we have some "Frequently Asked Questions" answered on our website at: http://www.dec.state.ak.us/eh/docs/fss/FactSheetFWCFPM.pdf (e.g., who needs the card, how long the card is valid, etc.).

As always, we appreciate your feedback and patience as we implement this new program.

Kimberly Stryker, Environmental Program Manager I
Food Safety & Sanitation
555 Cordova St
Anchorage AK 99501
907-269-7628
907-269-7510 fax

As of  this month, DEC has issued more than 10,000 food worker cards!!!! This is a major milestone and we appreciate your commitment to food safety in Alaska!

Track Trace Authenticate Systems Coalition: TTASC Alert
FoodCertificates.Org
Get Food Alerts When They Happen - Right To Your Email 

Here is an example of what you might see.
Fish and Seafood 2/5/2008
FDA Advises Seafood Processors About Ciguatera Fish Poisoning in the Northern Gulf of Mexico Near the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary   
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today issued a letter to seafood processors, advising them of recent illnesses linked to consuming fish carrying the ciguatera toxin, which has led to cases of ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) in consumers.
For more information on Food Certificates.Org:   Les Gentry,717-656-0248

Planning Checklist State & Local Government, Business, Individuals & Families, Schools,
Health Care, Community Organizations.  Link to appropriate area of interest below.



Transport Industry Information

Agricultural Information

Pandemic Flu.alaska.gov

World Health Organization - Avian Influenza

State of Alaska - Veterinarian