Training Program to implement adapted “food safety management systems” in European Artisan and farmhouse CHEESe and dairy production on the basis of the sectorial officially endorsed community Guide for good hygiene practices Erasmus Project

Project Title

Training Program to implement adapted “food safety management systems” in European Artisan and farmhouse CHEESe and dairy production on the basis of the sectorial officially endorsed community Guide for good hygiene practices

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Health and wellbeing; Reaching the policy level/dialogue with decision makers; Agriculture, forestry and fisheries

Project Summary

For farmhouse and artisan cheese and dairy producers, the quality and safety of their products is an essential issue. Yet, legal requirements set in the European Regulation “Hygiene Package”, require them not only to implement, but also to formalize and prove how they apply food safety principles in their enterprises.

In this context, FACEnetwork (Farmhouse and Artisan Cheese and Dairy Producer’s European network) has committed itself to carry out an ambitious project in two stages:

1- The production of a community Guide for good hygiene practices (GGHP), specifically dedicated to farmhouse and artisan cheese and dairy producers. This first programme took place in 2015-2016 and it was funded by European Commission. The Guide, on its completion was officially endorsed by European Commission and the Member States in December 2016.

2- The second stage is now the preparation of a large scale training sessions programme aiming to accompany the producers in their use of this official sectorial Guide; the TEACHEESY project, funded by Erasmus+.

Teacheesy aims to create and provide the necessary training tools and methologies required by qualified technicians and trainers which will, in turn, be used to instruct farmhouse and artisan cheesemakers across the whole of Europe on a common policy for good hygiene in cheesemaking.

During the first year, training tools and methodologies were made. The team met and coordinated its work in the framework of 4 transnational meetings that took place in 4 different countries: Germany (October 2017), Spain (January 2018), Bulgaria (April 2018) and Finland (July 2018). Between each of these key events, the team continued exchanging and working through skype meetings.

In autumn 2018, 5 training sessions addressed to technicians from the Teacheesy partners’ organisations were organised in 5 different countries: Spain, Italy, Poland, Germany and France. These sessions allowed the training toolkits and methods newly drafted to be used and assessed. Although these sessions took place in 5 countries only, the technicians from the 9 partner countries had the opportunity to participate as trainees. A total of 75 people participated as trainees in these sessions, among which around 70 were technicians/trainers.

Early 2019, the training tools and methods were finalized by the Teacheesy team according to the balance of the “trial” training sessions of the Automn 2018. 2 transnational meetings took place in the Netherlands in January and May 2019 to coordinate this work.

Between April and August 2019, each partner country organized an information event in its country, in order to present and explain the outcomes of Teacheesy. These events launched a larger scale and long term training programme in each country, on the basis of the work made through Teacheesy. A total of 277 people participated to these meetings, mostly producteurs and technicians, but also authorities.

Thus, The Teacheesy programme achieved its aim: now, a huge pedagogic set of more than 50 training media in 13 languages is available to all at the specific website, that will stay operative beyond the programme at the following address: www.face-network.eu/teacheesy.
Moreover, the sector of small scale European dairies benefits from now of a network of technicians across Europe, qualified on food safety management systems and who will stay in the link in the future and continue a sort of self-training process through their networking.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 264709,75 Eur

Project Coordinator

Farmhouse and Artisan Cheese and Dairy producers European network & Country: FR

Project Partners

• “Agrovis” Wisniewscy Spolka Jawna
• RED ESPANOLA DE QUESERIAS DE CAMPO Y ARTESANAS
• Agenform – Agenzia dei Servizi Formativi della Provincia di Cuneo Consorzio
• Association Nationale des Producteurs Laitiers Fermiers
• Sveriges Gårdsmejerister
• FONDATSIYA ZA BIOLOGICHNO ZEMEDELIE BIOSELENA
• HAMEEN AMMATTIKORKEAKOULU OY