At Teixeira Farms our Food Safety philosophy is simple: “We are committed to Food Safety.
Food Safety is the most important task of all our operations. All of our operations, actions and tasks will, in some way involve Food Safety.
Food Safety is an integral part of our entire operation. It includes growing, harvesting, warehousing, packaging and shipping. It also includes non-production items such as training of employees and training materials.
Food Safety is not a static program, it is dynamic in nature. Each and every meeting discusses Food Safety. Each and every management action ensures that Food Safety not only fits comfortably into the overall objective of Teixeira Farms, but that it is also understood and easily executed by each and every employee of Teixeira Farms.

Good Agricultural Practices(GAP)

Good Agricultural Practices are guidelines established to ensure a clean and safe working environment for all employees while eliminating the potential for contamination of food products. The GAP Program addresses the issues of site selection, adjacent land use, fertilizer usage, water sourcing and usage, pest control and pesticide monitoring, harvesting practices, (including worker hygiene, packaging storage, field sanitation and product transportation), and cooler operations. Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP) are developed and incorporated into the GAP program providing guidance with respect to potential points for contamination and preventative or corrective measures to mitigate their effects.

Field Auditing Program

This program provides a third party verification, (PrimusLabs.com), for our safe food production program. This program looks at such areas as ranch history, adjacent land use, fertilizer usage, water sourcing and usage, pest control, harvesting practices, employee safety and hygiene. When we’ve completed a comprehensive questionnaire for each ranch to be audited, provided by PrimusLabs.com, an auditor sent by them conducts an onsite inspection.

Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOP)

The SSOP minimizes the potential for contamination of our produce from the field to the cooler. The SSOP addresses issues such as employee hygiene, use of chemical and organic fertilizers, pesticide use and pest control, previous land use, irrigation and water sources and the harvesting operation.

Pesticide Residue Analysis

Selected crops that are grown at Teixeira Farms are “Certified” by way of pre-harvest sampling and analysis done by PrimusLabs.com. Their personnel collect a representative sample from the field to be harvested and maintain a strict chain of custody from the field to the laboratory for analysis. A product is “Certified” when it meets applicable government standards.