Follow Us To The Farm
Responding to the foodservice industry’s concern with food safety, Driscoll’s introduced a new Follow Us To The Farm program to trace berries back to the date of harvest, as well as the farm where the berries were grown.

Global Food & Safety
Driscoll’s Global Food Safety Program has been developed over decades of research, foodservice operator feedback and close cooperation with food safety experts as well as state, federal and international regulatory agencies.

Audits
As part of our Global Food Safety program, Driscoll’s audits every farm and facility around the world for food safety, environmental welfare and the fair and ethical treatment of workers. Scheduled and random audits are performed by a certified, independent third-party agency to ensure adherence to Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) for food safety set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA) and GLOBALGAP standards for proper working conditions, worker and environmental welfare.

Policies
Adherence to Driscoll’s Global Food Safety Program policies is a vital component of our independent farmer contractual relationships. We educate our independent farmers about company policy and enforce strict adherence. Our independent farmers are responsible for knowing and strictly adhering to federal, state and local food safety regulations. If inconsistencies are discovered, we investigate the potential violation with the farmer. Driscoll’s strives for immediate resolution of any non-compliance issues. Each farmer is aware that non-compliance carries consequences, including termination of their association with Driscoll’s.

Pesticides
Driscoll’s independent farmers are leaders in the practice of Integrated Pest Management, which uses a combination of natural and synthetic means to reduce disease and control pests.

Driscoll’s has made a commitment to significantly increase the production of organic berries and utilize our experience in organic farming to reduce the use of synthetic materials (including pesticides) in all of our products. For additional information on specific pesticides available for use by farmers, please refer to the U.S. EPA’s website.

Water
Irrigation water in all of our growing regions comes primarily from wells or municipal sources. Driscoll’s farmers do not use canal water to irrigate their plants. Microbial levels in irrigation water are monitored annually at every farm. All the independent farmers around the world who grow Driscoll’s berries must adhere to the same stringent water quality standards.

Microbial contamination can originate from three primary sources: water, people or animals. Driscoll’s addresses microbial contamination from water through annual audits that test irrigation water. Contamination by people is addressed through scheduled and random harvest crew audits that verify compliance with best hygiene practices. Animal contamination is controlled by keeping animals out of fields through a variety of methods. If microbial levels above allowed government tolerances are found in any berries, those berries are destroyed.

Foreign Object Contamination
Driscoll’s strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are hand picked and packaged in the field. Harvest crews are routinely audited to be sure their clothing is free of foreign objects that might accidentally fall into a package. To ensure the utmost quality and freshness, the berries are not touched again until opened by consumers. Blueberries are placed in the consumer containers in packing sheds and are carefully monitored for any foreign objects or debris.

Driscoll’s is fully registered and compliant with the requirements of the Bioterrorism Act of 2002. We maintain contact with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA) in order to comply with this and all other regulations.

Farmer Support
Information sharing helps our independent farmers excel. Driscoll’s Quality Assurance and Food Safety departments have more than 65 full-time employees who monitor fruit quality and work closely with farmers to ensure that the standards of Driscoll’s Global Food Safety Program are met. Driscoll’s farmers receive high scores on food safety, and worker and environmental welfare audits. By sharing their best practices, Driscoll’s independent farmers are able to grow the safest, fresh, most flavorful berries possible all year-round.

Quality Assurance
Driscoll’s berries are grown, harvested and shipped with the highest standards of care possible, regardless of where they are grown. We routinely audit all our farms and facilities around the world to ensure that we comply with and exceed national and international food safety rules. Every batch of berries we produce is inspected for quality and appearance by our highly trained staff to ensure they are fresh and delicious when they reach our customers. Our berries are cooled immediately after they leave the field and are not handled by anyone other than the consumer. This reduces bruising and maintains the berries’ wholesomeness throughout transportation. We are committed to providing consumers with useful information about where Driscoll’s berries are grown. Country of origin information is clearly stated on every product label and we support voluntary labeling programs that offer consumers more information about our products.

How to Contact Us
As your menu solutions partner, your business and growth is important to us and we welcome your feedback. If you have any comments, please contact us immediately and we will do all we can to answer any question you may have.

Driscoll’s toll-free call center is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year (in the U.S. and Canada) at 1-866-793-7178 to receive feedback from foodservice customers in the unlikely event that a contaminant is found in one of our products.