All About the Agricultural Water Assessment

What It Is and Why It Matters (and do you have to do it?)

Agricultural Water Assessment

What It Is and Why It Matters (and do you have to do it?)

The FSMA Agricultural Water Assessment can feel intimidating at first. It is a detailed evaluation of pre-harvest agricultural water, and that alone can be enough to make growers feel overwhelmed or start looking for an exemption. Instead, think of the Ag Water Assessment as a research project focused on your farm’s water system.

The assessment takes a whole-system approach to pre-harvest water. That means, it looks not only at the water source, but also at how water is used, how it moves through the farm, environmental conditions, and how the crops you grow may introduce or be affected by hazards that could contaminate fresh produce. While not every farm is required by law to complete an Ag Water Assessment, the process itself can be a valuable tool for improving on-farm food safety.

What Is the Agricultural Water Assessment?

An Agricultural Water (Ag Water) Assessment is a systematic (whole-farm) evaluation of pre-harvest water used on covered produce. The assessment applies to pre-harvest agricultural water, including irrigation water, water used for frost protection, and water used to mix sprays applied to covered produce. Instead of relying only on water testing, the assessment looks at how water is sourced, moved, and used across the farm to best understand how pre-harvest water could affect covered produce grown on the farm.

The purpose of the assessment is to help growers identify conditions on-farm that could introduce hazards (bacteria, viruses, or parasites) through agricultural water and determine whether corrective actions are needed. The assessment recognizes that contamination risk is influenced not just by water quality, but by how water interacts with farm practices and crops.

When completing the assessment, growers must consider several factors including:

Water system characteristics: Including the source of the water, distribution, and condition of the system.

Agricultural water practices: such as how, when, and where water is applied.

Crop characteristics: including whether certain crops are more likely to hold pathogens.

Environmental conditions: such as flooding, extreme weather, temperature, and sun exposure.

Other relevant factors that apply to the farm, including any available water test results

The assessment must be completed at least once per year and whenever significant changes occur, such as flooding. All findings, including what was evaluated and any corrective actions taken must be documented, signed, dated, and kept for two years.

To support growers, the FDA provides a recordkeeping resource for growers, the Agricultural Water Assessment Tool, available online or in paper form. The tool does not store farm information, it guides growers through the required considerations and helps document their decision-making process.

Who Must Complete an Agricultural Water Assessment?

Not all farms are required to complete a pre-harvest Ag Water Assessment. A farm may be exempt if its pre-harvest water meets one of the following criteria:

• Municipal Water Systems: farms using water from a municipal or public water system that complies with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).

• Testing: pre-harvest agricultural water that has been tested and meets requirements for post-harvest water (e.g., no detectable E. coli).

• Treated Water: water treated in accordance with FSMA requirements.

Even if the farm meets the exemption requirements, the exemption applies only if the water quality doesn’t change prior to use. Remember, water testing reflects the conditions of the water system on the day the sample(s) was taken. This does not account for any changes that could occur during the growing season or give an overview of the places along the way contamination could happen.

While the Ag Water Assessment may feel daunting at first, completing one can help growers identify risks, make informed decisions, and strengthen on-farm food safety practices. For questions about the assessment, FDA assessment tool, or for technical assistance on this topic or other produce safety topics, visit miofps.org.

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Article by Micah Thibodeau-Williams Produce Safety Technician