Reagan-Udall Foundation Releases Produce Safety Roadmap

The Reagan-Udall Foundation (RUF) for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an independent 501(c)(3) created by Congress to advance FDA’s mission, released its Roadmap to Produce Safety: Summary Report of the Produce Safety Dialogue July 28. The FDA-commissioned report reflects the voices of more than 170 produce sector stakeholders and makes two primary recommendations:  

1. Implement a shared responsibility approach. All stakeholders must actively participate in risk-based produce safety efforts, as foodborne illness outbreaks affect both consumers and the entire industry. The FDA encourages this approach of broader engagement and responsibility sharing.  
2. Form a structured, stakeholder-led collaboration. Transformative change requires the formation of a structured, stand-alone, sustainably funded collaboration led by influential stakeholders representing the diversity of the produce supply chain. The FDA will participate in this effort and agrees with the report’s recommendation that regulators should not own or lead the coalition. 

In line with the RUF recommendation, the FDA is calling on growers, buyers, sellers and federal and state regulators to form a sustainably funded stakeholder collaboration that includes academia and consumer advocates and actively improves conditions and practices to reduce contamination and prevent foodborne illness.  

To help the agency carry out the commitments outlined in the RUF report, the FDA announced a national search for executive leadership of the new Office of Produce Safety, established under the 2024 reorganization of the Human Foods Program.

Foodborne illnesses and recalls linked to fresh produce continue to challenge consumer trust and confidence.

The FDA said in a release that it is committed to engagement and collaboration with stakeholders to improve science-based strategies to prevent foodborne illness from produce. The agency cited ongoing prevention activities that complement the report recommendations, such as stakeholder engagement to learn from and share information with industry in order to identify and address root causes of outbreaks, implementation of agricultural water requirements, establishment of a data-sharing agreement and Activities for the Safety of Imported Produce that can inform strategies to prevent recurring outbreaks.  

DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF PRODUCE SAFETY.

Applications are open for the position of director of Office of Produce Safety on USAJOBS.

According to the job listing, the director will provide policy expertise on produce safety matters throughout the FDA, requiring “the highest level of scientific and regulatory expertise related to produce safety.”

Responsibilities include formulating FDA policies of national and international scope, including regulations, guidance, polices, strategies and programs designed to manage microbial risks in fresh and processed produce.

The position requires technical expertise and leadership related to food safety practices in produce growth, harvest and processing, said FDA. The director will provide executive leadership and managerial direction to personnel involved in the planning, development, execution and coordination of microbial food safety activities.

As principal advisor to the director of Office of Microbiological Food Safety (OMFS), the director of the Office of Produce Safety will provide recommendations on the initiation, curtailment, consolidation or decentralization of programs and the deployment of allocated resources, said FDA.

The director will collaborate with executives in the OMFS to create short- and long-term goals related to microbial food safety initiatives.

Read more about position responsibilities and qualifications here.