Food Safety

We anticipate that students will eat the food produced in their school garden. For this reason, it is important to understand how to minimize the risk of foodborne illness. Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) address food safety issues concerning water, soils, land use and animal access, tools, equipment and storage, employee and volunteer training, and record keeping. The article Adapting "Good Agricultural Practices" to Garden to Cafeteria Programs gives a great overview of the six categories of consideration for GAPs in school gardens. For more information about school garden food safety refer to the USDA's Food Safety Tips for School Gardens and Handling Fresh Produce in Classrooms.