SEPT. 30–ROCKVILLE, MD–The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given grants to 10 innovative programs designed to enhance food safety and address risks of foodborne disease in such diverse settings as animal feed plants, juice/cider operations, grocery stores and schools.
The state and local regulatory programs were awarded FDA grants totaling $350,000 during September’s Food Safety Education Month. The FDA grants are part of the Federal Food Safety program designed to promote the development of improved state and local food safety programs.
“These grants highlight the important role that state and local authorities play in contributing to the continued improvement of America’s food safety system,” says Dr. Lester M. Crawford, FDA Deputy Commissioner. “Their partnership with FDA is a crucial element in assuring the development of cutting-edge approaches to promoting food safety.”
The grants are for a one-year period and are awarded in two key areas–inspection techniques and education/health dissemination.
The grants awarded and the grantees are:
1. Central District Health Department (Idaho), $28,830 for “Implementation of Active Managerial Control in High Risk Establishments by Use of Temperature Control Logging Devices” – a program providing data loggers to high risk food service establishments for self assessment of cooling & cold holding procedures.
2. Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, $50,000 for “Hygiene and Sanitation Training Program for Small, Unregulated Retail Juice/Cider Operations” – a project for developing a comprehensive training program to stimulate implementation of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points -like food safety plans in juice plants.
3. Cuyahoga County Board of Health (Ohio), $49,263 for “Food Safety Education Through Quality Implementation” – a program tailored to improving smaller, independently-owned food service operations by creating HACCP-based, quality assurance program that can be customized to accommodate these firms.
4. Maricopa County Environmental Services Department (Arizona), $3,096 for “Study of Inspection Activity Times by Facility Type” – a study designed to assess the most effective way to allocate inspection resources for different types of regulated food facilities.
5. Seattle & King County Public Health (Washington), $49,661 for “Food Safety Education Video Focusing on Appropriate Bare Hand Barrier in the Workplace”- a short educational program involving a video and accompanying education material, designed to educate food service workers on avoiding bare hand contact in the preparation of ready-to-eat food.
6. South Dakota Department of Agriculture, $45,928 for “Development of Innovative Regulatory Inspection Methods: The Assessment of Aminoglycoside Antimicrobials in Animal Feeds” – a developmental program for establishing an analytical method for determining the presence of aminoglycoside antimicrobials in animal feeds.
7. Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department County (Washington), $50,000 for “Enhancement for Worker Education & Training Using the Most Up-To-Date & Technologically Advanced Food Safety Training Tools and Materials” – a program for improving the training and testing for all food workers and managers – especially those who have low-literacy skills.
8. Town of Braintree Health Department (Massachusetts), $4,665 for “Junior Food Service and Training and Certification Program” – a program for educating teenagers in the fundamentals of proper food handling both at home and in the workplace.
9. Tulsa City-County Health Department (Oklahoma), $34,320 for “Enhanced Food Inspection Project” – a system that food establishments can use to monitor their own food preparation activities so as to reduce harmful practices and decrease the incidence of food establishments failing food safety inspections.
10. Utah Department of Agriculture & Food, $48,880 for “Grocery 101:Food Safety” – an inspection driven, food safety training program designed to help for grocery store employees achieve greater success in efficiently and effectively complying with the standards contained in the FDA Model Food Code.
The FDA has provided these grants to state and food safety programs since 1999. On September 26, 2002, the results of grants awarded in FY1999 and 2000 will be showcased in a satellite teleconference. For additional information on how to view this broadcast go to: http://www.fda.gov/ora/fed_state/events/20020926_announcement.htm