ACVPM Food Protection Practice Exam

Managing manure with respect to harvest timing is about protecting the edible portion from contamination. Raw manure carries pathogens, so there’s a required minimum interval between application and harvest to give those pathogens time to die off or be significantly reduced. The appropriate interval depends on whether the edible portion of the crop will contact soil (typically a longer period, around 120 days) or not (around 90 days). A 3-day waiting period is far too short to meet these safety requirements, and applying raw manure directly to the harvestable portion would still pose a risk. In practice, raw manure must be applied well in advance or on areas where the harvestable portion won’t be directly exposed to soil, or composted and handled under conditions that meet safety guidelines.