Agricultural Water & Produce Safety
Agricultural water is water that is intended to, or likely to, contact covered produce or food contact surfaces during growing, harvesting, packing, and holding activities. The Produce Safety Rule requires that all agricultural water must be safe and of adequate sanitary quality for its intended use.
The FDA finalized the FSMA Produce Safety Rule "Requirements for Harvest and Post-Harvest Agricultural Water" and the compliance dates are as follows:
- January 26, 2023, for all other businesses (produce sales >$500K/year)
- January 26, 2024, for small businesses (produce sales >$250K-$500K/year)
- January 26, 2025, for very small businesses (produce sales >$25K-$250K/year)
The FDA is currently revising the pre-harvest agricultural water requirements, view the proposed changes in the Resources below.
Resources
- FSMA Proposed Rule on Agricultural Water
- Ag Water Tools and Calculators
- National Water Quality Testing Labs Map