September 2023: Direct From CDC/Environmental Health Services
September 2023
Volume 86, Number 2
Editor's Note: The National Environmental Health Association strives to provide up-to-date and relevant information on environmental health and to build partnerships in the profession. In pursuit of these goals, we feature a column on environmental health services from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in every issue of the Journal of Environmental Health.
In these columns, authors from the CDC Water, Food, and Environmental Health Services Branch, as well as guest authors, will share tools, resources, and guidance for environmental health practitioners. The conclusions of these columns are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of CDC.
Retail Collaborative Provides Tools and Resources to Drive Food Safety
Maggie Byrne, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Terryn Laird, National Environmental Health Association
Brooke Benschoter, MS, APR, Association of Food and Drug Officials
Jonathan Wolfe, MBA, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
David McSwane, HSD, REHS, CP-FS, Conference for Food Protection
Anupama Varma, National Association of County and City Health Officials
Chelsea Gridley-Smith, PhD, National Association of County and City Health Officials
Nicholas Adams, National Association of County and City Health Officials
Steven Nattrass, MPH, REHS, Food and Drug Administration
Ashlee Strong, Food and Drug Administration
More than one half of all foodborne illness outbreaks in the U.S. are associated with restaurants. To reduce foodborne illness and outbreaks at the retail level, FDA brought together key partners to expand the capacity of food safety programs. The Retail Food Safety Regulatory Association Collaborative (Collaborative) brings together representatives from seven member organizations with a role in improving retail food safety in the U.S.: AFDO, ASTHO, CFP, NACCHO, NEHA, CDC, and FDA.
These organizations leverage their combined strengths and resources as the Collaborative to create and share tools and resources that food safety programs can use to improve food safety in their jurisdictions. In addition, the Collaborative is poised to influence or benefit regulatory food safety programs and the food safety culture at restaurants and other retail food establishments through its six objectives. This month’s column highlights the different tools and resources provided by the Collaborative to drive food safety.