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Poultry Processing Training Program

If you are interested in using the MPPU on your farm, regulatory agencies require that producers attend a food safety and MPPU operations training to be eligible for a state slaughter license to sell birds direct to consumers. The training requirement will prepare you to complete the application for a special state slaughter license, to approach your local board of health for appropriate approvals, and to operate and manage the MPPU on your farm for direct commercial sale to consumers. In addition to the required training, you are strongly encouraged to volunteer or apprentice on the MPPU with an experienced user before your first scheduled use of the MPPU. Support for this training is provided through a grant from the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program.

In 2010, there will be a multi-phase training and technical assistance program offered to farmers interested in using the MPPU to process and sell poultry direct to consumers. Each training phase is explained in detail below:

Step 1: Apply for your MPPU slaughter license and local town approvals
** Individual technical assistance is available **
Step 2: Attend an orientation and practical skills training in using the MPPU on the farm
Step 3: Mentor on farm with an experienced MPPU user

Step 1: Processing Your Poultry: Logistics, Regulations, and Resources
Thursday, January 20, 2011
9:30 – 3:30pm
Location: Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Bernice Barbour Wildlife Medicine Building Conference Room, 50 Willard Street, North Grafton, MA.
Cost: $40 registration fee includes lunch and resource materials.

This workshop will focus on what the Massachusetts poultry grower needs to do in order to legally sell meat through CSAs, farmers markets, directly to consumers or to restaurants. The workshop is strongly suggested for any producer who hopes to use one of the two Mobile Poultry Processing Units operated by the New England Small Farm Institute and New Entry Sustainable Farming Project, but will also cover other options for small farmers to process their meat birds.

The classroom training will include information on: the logistics and economics of using the MPPU and other processing options; federal, state, and local poultry processing regulations; sanitation and food safety procedures; solid waste and wastewater regulations; certification of flock health; the MDPH slaughter license application process; on-farm equipment needed for appropriate processing; humane processing steps; HACCP plan record-keeping requirements; and preparing for the MPPU use on your farm.

To participate in the training, please register here. If you have any trouble with the registration, please contact Sam Anderson at sanderson@comteam.org or at 978-654-6745.

As a follow up to the workshop, individual technical assistance will be provided to farmers who would like guidance in preparing their state slaughter license applications or approaching their local board of health for approvals to use the MPPU on their farm.

If you are interested in using the MPPU and cannot attend Part 1 (Regulatory and Licensing Workshop) of the training series, please proceed with completion of your local town approval and submittal of your state slaughter license application to MDPH. Use the Handbook for Small-Scale Poultry Producer-Processor for self-study. It is recommended to begin the regulatory approval process early in the calendar year to allow sufficient time to receive agency review prior to your first anticipated use of the MPPU.  Orientation to the MPPU (required to schedule the unit) is offered once per year in the spring (see Step 2). And if you run into trouble anywhere along the way, don't hesitate to contact Sam Anderson at sanderson@comteam.org or 978-654-6745—we're here to help!

Step 2:  For town-approved/state licensed farmers: Orientation to MPPU and Practical Skills Workshop in Operating and Managing the MPPU on the Farm.
May, TBD

This next step is for farmers who receive local town/board of health approvals, and who have completed and / or are in the agency review process with MDPH to use the MPPU on their farm.  In order to schedule use of the MPPU on your farm in 2011, you must attend this Orientation and Practical Skills Workshop in MPPU operations.  This practical skills training will cover: pre-MPPU arrival procedures; positioning and connecting MPPU equipment; pre-process sanitation; HACCP plan record-keeping requirements; processing personnel/labor management; poultry processing demonstration (farmers will be practicing hands-on processing and record-keeping skills); solid waste management; packaging and labeling; post-MPPU sanitation; and follow up record-keeping requirements for license maintenance.

Attendees who complete the Part 1 training will be emailed a registration form for this training. If you have completed your local and state approvals independently of the workshop, please email sanderson@comteam.org to receive registration materials for the Part 2 orientation and practical skills training.

Step 3:  Mentoring and On-Farm Practical Experience with MPPU in Production.
As scheduled with experienced farmers using MPPU.  Location varies.  Free/Volunteer.

All users of the MPPU are subject to MDPH Food Protection Program Inspection during processing.  This is especially true of first-time users.  It is strongly encouraged that first-time MPPU users (or farmers potentially interested in using the MPPU prior to licensure) gain practical experience in MPPU operations and personnel management beyond the practicum provided in Part 2 of the training series.  A list of MPPU farms willing to train new users will be provided to farmers and it will be up to the individual to schedule their own mentoring or volunteer work session(s) to prepare for MPPU use.  By mentoring or volunteering on the MPPU at a licensed farm that has experienced the pressure of processing, managing labor, and being observed by public health inspectors, new users will gain invaluable experience to apply to their own operations.

Handbook for Small-Scale Poultry Producer-Processors

New Entry prepared a Handbook for Small-Scale Poultry Producer-Processors (pdf) that describes how to apply for licensure to process poultry using a Massachusetts-inspected MPPU. Producers are encouraged to use the guide to understand basic requirements for MPPU use and licensure. The guide contains:

• Overview of Mass regulations regarding poultry processing
• Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
• Step-by-Step guidance on completing the Mass Slaughter License application
• What to expect after completing the application
• Regulatory Resources

For questions or clarification about the Handbook, please contact Jennifer Hashley at 617-636-3793 or by email at: jennifer.hashley@tufts.edu. For technical assistance in completing your local and state approvals for MPPU use, please contact Sam Anderson at 978-654-6745 or by email at:  sanderson@comteam.org.