FDA Awards $17M to UMD to Improve Food Safety

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has awarded $17M to the University of Maryland (UMD) to help improve national food safety programs and international food standards. The grant will allow the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN), a partnership between the FDA and UMD that is focused on increasing global knowledge of effective food safety practices, to conduct multi-institutional, multidisciplinary research projects over the next five years. These research projects, along with the development of innovative education and outreach programs, will help JIFSAN create strategies to improve public health, food safety, and applied nutrition using risk analysis principles.

“The work conducted by JIFSAN is important on a global scale, helping food safety professionals from across the world understand how to properly implement and advance a healthy food system,” said Craig Beyrouty, dean and director of UMD’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. “JIFSAN’s partnership with the FDA remains strong, and through this generous award we’re looking forward to making significant strides in the next five years.”

As an FDA Center of Excellence, JIFSAN conducts various research and outreach activities in food safety and applied nutrition to help ensure that regulatory decisions are guided by scientific research and that the best methods and tools are available to advance food safety. JIFSAN has also developed innovative capacity-building partnerships with various stakeholders to support the Food Safety Modernization Act that emphasizes the concept of preventing food safety-related problems and enhancing FDA’s global efforts to improve U.S. and worldwide health.

Since its inception in 1996, JIFSAN has funded numerous UMD faculty research projects and provided 350 undergraduate students with internships with the FDA. JIFSAN’s international food safety training programs have trained over 9,000 food safety professionals who represent more than 40 countries.

“We thank FDA for its support to JIFSAN for the past 20 years, and are excited about the opportunities it provides us to improve food safety globally through our research, education and outreach programs,” said Professor Jianghong Meng, director of JIFSAN.