RESEARCH & SUPPORT
The RFA is your resource for information and support on food safety,
technical issues and regulatory compliance. A full list of all
of the RFA’s technical resources is available on the RFA website,
under the “Resources” section.
Technical Hotline
Get immediate answers to your technical questions via the Technical
Hotline! Members can contact RFA Technical Director Martin Mitchell
by phone or email to ask
questions on food safety and regulatory issues. Members click
here for Technical Hotline
contact information.
Technical E-News and E-News Index
Stay up-to-date on the latest food safety and regulatory issues affecting
the industry with the Technical E-News, a bimonthly email newsletter
containing the latest technical news headlines and articles.
Also available is the Technical E-News Index - an archive of all past
Technical E-news articles organized by topic.
The Technical E-News Index as well as all current and past issues
of the Technical E-News are available to view on the RFA website in
the Members-Only Section.
RFA Listserv
Have a question about plant design? Looking for feedback from other
members on a new software program? Get involved in the RFA Listserv,
an email discussion group that allows members to send questions or
comments to an entire group at one time. For full details on
how the Listserv works and to find out how you can get involved, click
here.
Research Studies and Reports
As a member of the RFA, you have access to in-depth research on the important
food safety concerns you face within your plant each day. The RFA
has a library of primary research on critical food safety topics, including
microbiological control, HACCP, cross-contamination, allergens, and labeling.
Click here to see the full list of available
resources.
EDUCATION & ADVANCEMENT
The RFA offers valuable web conferences, symposiums and conferences
throughout the year that provide information and education on critical
food safety issues and allow members to learn and share with others
in their field.
Technical Web Conferences
The RFA Technical Committee hosts four technical web conferences per
year on timely, relevant food safety and regulatory topics. Titles
from the first three web conferences held this year are listed below. A
fourth web conference on the topic of Trends in Healthy Ingredients
is planned for July 2009. Slide presentations for all past web
conferences are now available in the Members-Only
Section.
• Best Practices for Good Cold Chain Management (November
2008)
by Elizabeth Darragh of Sensitech
• Effective Ways to Handle Consumer Complaints (March
2009)
by a panel of speakers from SOCAP International: Cindy Fritton
of ConAgra Foods, Elizabeth Tanis of Sara Lee Corporation, and Jack Sullivan
of Unilever
• Effective and Safe Tempering Practices (May
2009)
by Don Schaffner of Rutgers University and Scott Robertson of
RMF
RFA Symposium & Tour
The RFA Technical Committee plans and organizes the Technical track
portion of the Fall RFA Symposium. This past year, the RFA Symposium
took place in Chicago, and included educational technical sessions
along with a visit to The National Center for Food Safety and Technology
and a full tour of Sterigenics’ Food Irradiation Facility.
This year, the
RFA Symposium will be held in September at Michigan State
University in East Lansing, Michigan. It will feature valuable
speaker sessions on important food safety topics as well as interactive
tours of the MSU meat lab and dairy plant, a visit to the renowned School
of Packaging, and an in-depth tour of Lansing-based Neogen Corporation,
where attendees will learn first-hand about the latest developments in
rapid testing kits for food safety.
NEW PROJECTS
The Technical Committee works each year to complete one or more major
technical projects. Details of the recently completed project
for 2009 and the upcoming 2010 projects are below.
What’s New: “RFA Standardized
Protocol for Determining Shelf Life of Refrigerated Foods”
The RFA Shelf Life Protocol was updated this year to reflect a number of important
regulatory and technological changes that have been adopted in the food industry
since its development in 2002, and it now represents the industry’s most
thorough and objective guide to measuring the shelf life and safety of refrigerated
prepared foods. The completed report is available on the RFA website.
What’s Next: New RFA Food
Safety Training DVD
The Technical Committee has begun work
on a new Food Safety Training DVD that will be geared to senior-level
employees and supervisors. The
DVD will cover HACCP, Personal hygiene, Microorganisms in the plant,
Sanitation and Equipment cleanliness, Building maintenance, Allergen
control, Food defense, Audit preparation, and Traceability. It
will again include both English and Spanish versions and will contain
materials for follow-up testing. The DVD is scheduled to be completed by
the 2010 Conference in San Francisco.
Clarification on USDA/FSIS Inspections
The Technical Committee is planning
to work with Washington council to get a clear-cut definition as to
what members’ rights are under
USDA and FDA inspection. The goal of this project is to provide
members with definitive documentation showing what FSIS/USDA inspectors
are allowed to ask for during inspections.
Get Involved!
The Technical Committee is always
looking for input and comments from members on topics and issues they
would like to see addressed. If you have input or would like to join
the Technical Committee, please contact RFA Technical Director Martin
Mitchellor Technical Committee Chair
Bill Schwartz.
2009 TECHNICAL BROCHURE DOWNLOAD:
Click the following link to download PDF file of
the 2009 Technical Resources Update Brochure:
(Note: This is a PDF file and require Adobe Acrobat Reader to view)
- 2009 Technical Brochure
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