Frank Yiannas, FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response reflects on the achievements of the agency during 2021. The highlights included:
- The 10-year anniversary of FSMA being signed into law
- The publication of a proposed rule to establish revised standards for agricultural water to further strengthen the safety of produce.
- The issue of a final laboratory accreditation rule to improve the accuracy and reliability of certain food testing.
- The release of its Foodborne Outbreak Response Improvement Plan. This plan is designed to improve the speed, effectiveness, and coordination of outbreak investigations. The priorities include tech-enabled traceability, root cause analysis, and outbreak data.
- The launch of the Low- or No-Cost Tech-Enabled Traceability Challenge to encourage the development of traceability systems that use low- to no- cost economic models.
- Conducting remote regulatory assessments at a variety of establishments, including remote inspections of importers subject to the Foreign Supplier Verification Programs requirements under FSMA.
- Signing domestic mutual reliance agreements with California, Florida, Utah, and Wisconsin. These agreements facilitate a coordinated effort to reduce human foodborne illness outbreaks, reduce duplication of regulatory oversight and focus on areas of higher risk.
- Facilitating a three-day summit to explore potential safety vulnerabilities in foods ordered online and delivered directly to consumers.
- Co-sponsoring a series of webinars with the non-profit Stop Foodborne Illness to engage experts in an exchange of ideas and experiences related to the importance of a robust food safety culture in helping ensure safe food production.
FDA have certainly been productive during the past 12 months with lots of achievements to celebrate. You can read more in Acting Commissioner Janet Woodcock’s FDA 2021 Year in Review – Highlights Report.
To wrap this up, what can we look forward to in 2022? Mr Yiannas reports that the FDA “will move forward on these achievements and others, including holding public meetings on the proposed revised agricultural water standards and releasing a final Food Traceability Rule. We are exploring the best uses of artificial intelligence and considering the most effective ways to unleash the power of data, which is so critical to advancing food safety”.
