The most fundamental policy which must be followed in the construction of the root cellar is the Food Safety Modernization Act. Signed by President Obama, this act’s primary purpose is to shift the FDA’s focus from responding to foodborne illness outbreaks and towards preventing them in the first place (FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, 2018). Due to the size of LaFarm and its low level of production it is actually exempt from FSMA regulation. With a profit of around $9,000 this past year, the farm falls below the exemption limit of selling less than $25,000 of goods over the previous three years (LaFarm Greenhouse Capstone, 2017).
Despite the exemption regarding the FSMA, a strong incentive still exists to follow the guidelines set out for food storage by the FSMA. The specific regulations relevant to the root cellar concerning the FSMA are detailed within the Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption: Guidance for Industry (2018). A few examples of these standards are that “food storage facilities must have a record of dates corresponding with the storage of separate batches of food” and “food within food storage locations should be protected from cross-contact as to prevent cross contamination”
In addition to the FSMA regulations, guidelines formed by both the FDA and the USDA act as additional standards to insure the highest degree of safety is kept. Based on good handling practices as outlined by the FDA, the primary handling fundamentals include an expectation to check water for contaminants at least once a year, active effort to prevent contamination, and an expectation that handlers are trained regarding health and hygiene standards (FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, 2015). All of this applies in the washing and care for produce before and after it is stored. In addition to following these guidelines, smaller farms such a LaFarm can go through voluntary audits which verify that the meet standards in preventing microbial food hazards. These audits are called Good Holding Practices alongside Good Agricultural Practices (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2014). In order to ensure that the root cellar is properly used, these guidelines should be followed alongside those listed by the FSMA. There are many instances of repetition, but following all verifies that all safety standards are met. By following these guidelines, which have been proven to help prevent the spread of foodborne illness, LaFarm will be able to supply the highest quality of food to Lafayette College and anyone else who may be eating its produce. The main goal of any food producing operation is to ensure that all of the food is safe to consume and in its healthiest form.
Since LaFarm is a subsidiary unit of Lafayette College, the primary purpose of anything done on LaFarm is to add educational value for current and future students. Through abiding by FSMA, FDA, and USDA regulations, the farm is showing students the industry standard. When students participate in courses that include conversation about the root cellar, the adherence to these regulations can be referenced. A root cellar that adheres to a very strict level of safe food handling practices will serve as an example to students of the proper way food should be handled.
Besides regulating food safety, the USDA helps to ensures that sustainable agricultural practices are being promoted across the US and have helped the farm-to-table movement to develop even farther. One way that the USDA did this was to amend laws in order to change where food in K-12 public institutions was obtained from. The National School Lunch Act was created in 1946 by the USDA in order to regulate school lunches and in 2002 an amendment was added that encouraged public schools to buy and use locally grown food in their cafeterias. Since this change was implemented, many different states have enacted their own laws and regulation that support this change in food at public schools (Izumi et al., 2010). Although these laws do not have an impact on private colleges like Lafayette, they serve as an indication that movements, such as the farm-to-table movement, are becoming more popular and are actually being supported by both the federal and state level governments. These federal and state programs can be used as examples for higher learning institutions in that they should be sourcing their food from local growers rather than buying it from large distribution companies that are partnered with commercial farms.
In order to ensure that our classroom space was able to provide the necessary amenities for students at Lafayette. To ensure that this happens we based our ideas on the Pennsylvania Public School Codes of 1949 to include all features that are necessary for a functional classroom. The Public School Codes are more based on grants given by the state based on costs, but we focused more on the processes and overall need additions that are important on building a classroom space. Under section 751.a.2, the regulations states that all construction of any school buildings must include the introduction of plumbing, heating and ventilation, electrical works, and lighting systems must be prepared with the appropriate detailing in size and materials of the structures (Public School Code, 1949). In 1972, it was added to the that under Section 703.1 that all constructed building spaces with educational purposes must comply with the standards and regulations established by the State Board of Education and the Department of Labor and Industry.
Stakeholders
In order to make the addition of both a root cellar and an outdoor classroom as effective as possible, we must take into account all of the people who will be affected by the project. The first group of people to take into account when it comes to LaFarm are the students who are part of the Lafayette College community. In order to do so, we must consider what will be the most beneficial for the students at the LaFarm site. The addition of both a root cellar and an outdoor classroom will increase the educational opportunities for the Lafayette students in a non traditional setting. This will increase the overall experience that they have while learning at the college. By creating an outdoor classroom at LaFarm it will also provide students with an extension of campus that they can use in any way that they see fit.
LaFarm is managed by an advisory board, made up of several professors from different departments, as well as a farm manager, Lisa Miskelly. The LaFarm staff and advisors are the people on campus who are most aware of the areas in which the farm is lacking. In order to effectively implement the root cellar as well as the classroom the input from the board as well as the farm manager will be influential. In order to ensure that these thoughts are taken into account we met with Lisa Miskelly in order to hear her concerns and needs regarding the root cellar and the classroom. She was able to provide us with her needs for size of both of the additions as well as the ideal locations for both.
Lafayette College is likely the biggest stakeholder that must be taken into account when any changes are being made to LaFarm. This is because the success of the farm reflects back on the school so they want it to be as productive and efficient as possible. The farm provides their students with the opportunity to get off of campus and get involved in volunteering and both the classroom and the root cellar would enhance this experience. The creation of a sustainable food loop for the schools dining services is also a major selling point to prospective students as well as step towards their sustainability goals. The development of a sustainable food loop between the college and LaFarm will help to create a food system that is completely independent from the global An increase in the efficiency and production of food at LaFarm will greatly benefit dining service’s ability to serve sustainably sourced food in the dining halls. The storage of food at LaFarm will also decrease the amount of food waste that is produced by dining services. The increase in sustainably sourced food and the decrease in food waste as well as the reduction of emissions producing storage will help the school further its climate action goals.
Since LaFarm is not located on the main Lafayette College campus, the community members located directly around LaFarm must be taken into account because they are affected by any development projects taken on by LaFarm due to their proximity. This includes things such as construction noise, increased traffic from students, and the decrease of undeveloped land in their community. There are also positive impacts from the donation of food from LaFarm to their community partners, such as the Easton Urban Farm, as well as the selling of organic seeds.
Easton/Forks township and Lafayette College
In this project, we must consider the overall goals that Lafayette College has for its campus. One of the main goals that Lafayette carries throughout its campus and the activities that it conducts is sustainability. One example of this the Grossman House dorm located on campus which has a LEED gold certification. In order to keep sustainability at the forefront of everything that it does, Lafayette created its own Campus Energy Policy. This policy states that all new construction and development will strive for LEED certification, this should include structures at LaFarm. Although we likely will not be working towards LEED certification, we aim to build carbon neutral facilities in order to carry out the colleges ideology of sustainability. The addition of a root cellar at LaFarm will be a perfect example of a carbon neutral storage unit for produce. Additionally, the root cellar will reduce the amount of waste food that comes from LaFarm since there is not on site storage currently available.
LaFarm is located with Forks Township, thus before moving to the technical planning we must have an understanding of the zoning laws and building permits of Forks, Pennsylvania. After looking at the zoning maps for Forks Township, the location of LaFarm lays on top of REM (Recreational/Educational/Municipal) land according to Township of Forks Ordinance 331 Code § 200. Based on the zoning and the Pennsylvania statewide zoning laws, this land can be used in a variety of purposes which includes agriculture or educational. Moreover, the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code exempts any agricultural building on agricultural land from building codes. This is important information to know for our project because it means that according to the zoning laws, LaFarm will be a very feasible location for building of the classroom along with the root cellar. The LaFarm classroom and root cellar project will require permits in order to be built. This could prove to be a problem if permit applications are denied due to the township disapproving of the project or if they believe that the building project will create a disturbance for the surrounding community. In order to properly apply for permits the help of the Forks Township will be required to ensure that the designs adhere to any and all requirements of building projects in the township.
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