FDA announced new steps to strengthen FDA’s food safety program for 2020 and beyond

FDA proposed new funding across multiple aspects of food safety, believing that they must invest to prevent problems from happening by further implementing of FSMA. For Fiscal Year 2017, FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition responded to 794 recall events due to issues such as microbial contamination and undeclared allergens and oversaw the recall of 3,609 products. Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) has made it easier to determine the source of contaminated food associated with human illness, and to better identify foodborne outbreaks. FDA intends to extend its use. Efficiently tracking and tracing regulated products is another area of focus. Using emerging technologies, including blockchain, to allow the FDA to intervene in time to alert consumers, implement recalls, and avoid human illnesses. FDA also is working to secure the safety of imported foods, requesting more resources to focus on import oversight. @ https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm633864.htm