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Leafy Greens

Fresh leafy greens including lettuce, spinach, kale, and other salad greens.

Last verified: February 2026 against 21 CFR Part 1 Subpart S

Foods on the FTL (13)

Lettuce (all varieties)
iceberg lettuceromaine lettucebutterhead lettucebibb lettucered leaf lettucegreen leaf lettuceboston lettucelittle gem lettuce
Spinach
baby spinachflat-leaf spinachsavoy spinach
Kale
curly kalelacinato kaledinosaur kaletuscan kalebaby kalered kale
Arugula
rocketroquettebaby arugulawild arugula
Chard
swiss chardrainbow chardred chardsilverbeet
Collard greens
collards
Mustard greens
mizunatatsoi
Endive
belgian endivefriseeescarolechicory
Watercress
upland cress
Spring mix / Mesclun
salad mixfield greensmixed greensmesclun mix
Turnip greens
Beet greens
Bok choy
pak choichinese cabbage (baby)

What's NOT on the FTL

These items are explicitly excluded from the Leafy Greens category and do not require FSMA 204 traceability records.

×Whole head cabbage (including napa)
×Microgreens

Required Critical Tracking Events (4)

Each CTE requires specific records to be created and maintained for Leafy Greens.

Growing (harvesting)

Activities related to growing and harvesting a food, including activities in a field, orchard, or aquaculture operation.

Applies to: Farms and growing operations

Receiving

The act of receiving a food at a facility other than a farm.

Applies to: All entities in the supply chain except farms

Transforming (cooling, packing)

An event that changes the Traceability Lot Code (TLC) of a food, including manufacturing, processing, packing, re-packing, and labeling.

Applies to: Processors, packers, manufacturers

Creating (first TLC assignment)CoolingPacking/Re-packingManufacturing/Processing

Shipping

The act of shipping a food from one location to another.

Applies to: All entities shipping FTL foods

Required Key Data Elements (8)

These data fields must be recorded and maintained for each Critical Tracking Event involving Leafy Greens.

Traceability Lot Code
Quantity and Unit of Measure
Product Description
Location of growing area
Date of harvesting
Date of cooling
Date of receipt/shipment
Reference Document Number

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