Background

Good manufacturing practices or GMPs describe the conditions and practices that are necessary for the processing, packaging and storage of food to ensure its safety and wholesomeness. The current federal GMP regulation specifically applies to all food products regulated by FDA, and can be found in Part 110 of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations. It outlines the basic sanitary controls that are required for all food processing plants, wholesale or food distribution firms and warehouses or food storage facilities that handle, store or process FDA-regulated food. This GMP regulation also provides a framework for the specific state regulations that may apply to these firms.

New Internet Training Program on GMPs

One of the more difficult challenges for many businesses in the food industry is to convert the general conditions and practices described in the GMP regulation into routine or periodic procedures that will ensure compliance. A new GMP internet-based training course has been designed to train supervisors, middle level managers, quality control staff and anyone else with routine responsibilities for food safety and sanitation procedures in food processing, manufacturing, wholesale and warehouse facilities to ensure the safety and wholesomeness of foods. This training course was developed by a national team of food scientists led by NY Sea Grant’s Ken Gall for a USDA/CSREES National Food Safety Initiative project (Project No. 2005-51110-03291). The GMP Internet course was launched in April 2008, and is hosted and managed by Cornell Cooperative Extension and the New York Sea Grant program.

Course Content and Features

The GMP internet course consists of twelve modules that cover the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) regulations that apply to all firms that process, package or hold human foods.. After discussing each requirement in the GMP regulation, practical tips are provided that describe “what you can do” to meet that requirement along with suggestions for monitoring that condition or practice. At the end of each module a checklist of conditions, procedures or practices that need to be developed to meet the sections of the GMP regulation that were reviewed is provided. Links to additional internet resources are included throughout the course for more detailed information on the various topics discussed. The course is available on demand at a low cost. Each student is tracked by a unique username and password, and upon completion of all course materials a certificate of course completion is provided to document the training. The course is available in English and Spanish.

Online classes conducted via Cornell University's Institute for Food Safety