Many fresh fruits and vegetables are eaten with little or no cooking-they are "ready to eat".
Because they are not cooked, raw fruits and vegetables can be a source of disease-causing
bacteria, viruses or parasites (pathogens). Foodbome disease outbreaks have been associated
with raw tomatoes, carrots, sprouts, lettuce, cantaloupe and cabbage.
Humans and animals are the major source of pathogens in our food supply. E.coli 0157.H7,
Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium
parvum and hepatitis A can often be traced back to human or animal sources. When fruits
and vegetables are processed or packed, there is likely to be direct human contact with fresh
produce.
"Personal hygiene" includes practices that promote health and cleanliness. Good worker
hygiene practices during production and harvest can help to minimize microbial
contamination. Therefore, it is important to make worker health and hygiene a priority.
Frequent and effective handwashing should be expected. To make this possible, toilet
facilities must be clean, maintained and supplied. You will need to think about how you will
address worker illness. Infected employees - those with infectious diseases or open
lesions/wounds - could increase the risk of transmitting foodborne illnesses. Workers with
symptoms of nausea, vomiting or diarrhea should not handle the fruits or vegetables.
Prevention practices and knowledge are the key to the safety of the fruits and vegetables that
you harvest.
Post-harvest "processing" that includes removal of anything more then soil and plant
material or debris, may be subject to state regulations. If produce is packed in the field,
producers should keep in mind the importance of good worker hygiene. For example,
strawberries and tomatoes, most often eaten uncooked or "raw" by the consumer, should be