Salmonella Risk Assessment - FSIS
FSIS Salmonella Risk Assessment Cooperative Agreement Announcement Performance Period:
June 2022 – March 2023 A.
SUMMARY The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is the public health agency in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) responsible for ensuring the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products.
FSIS ensures food safety through the authorities of the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, and the Egg Products Inspection Act, as well as humane animal handling through the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act.
The Office of Public Health Science (OPHS)—one of many program areas supporting FSIS’ mission—brings public health leadership to USDA-FSIS to assure the establishment and support of scientifically sound food safety programs.
The OPHS Risk Assessment and Analytics Staff (RAAS) conducts scientific risk assessments and develops new analytic methods for assessing risks of biological and chemical hazards in meat, poultry and egg products that inform risk management decisions and risk communication activities.
RAAS’ scientific and technical analyses guide, support and enhance FSIS public health goals as they relate to regulatory initiatives, internal policy-making, data collection, research priorities, and the USDA-FSIS food safety goals.
FSIS recently announced it will develop a stronger and more comprehensive food safety framework for the control of Salmonella in poultry.
Several initiatives are underway to incorporate the latest science, data and laboratory technology into FSIS’s decision-making to identify ways to control Salmonella in poultry and reduce foodborne illness.
FSIS is developing two separate risk assessment models, in chicken and in turkey.
These production-to-consumption risk models will estimate reductions in foodborne illness attributed to chicken and to turkey resulting from control of Salmonella.
Specifically, the models will predict the impact of:
· controlling Salmonella prevalence, levels (enumeration), and subtypes of public health concern pre-harvest and post-harvest, · implementing preharvest controls, post-harvest controls, and combined pre- and post-harvest controls, and · establishing criteria limiting Salmonella prevalence, levels and/or subtypes, or requiring a specified reduction in a relevant indicator organism.
Inputs will include prevalence, levels, and subtypes of Salmonella at various points in the production-to-consumption chain, along with pre-harvest and post-harvest production practices.
FSIS will be able to use FSIS-generated data for some of the model inputs.
Other inputs may be informed by published scientific studies, or expert elicitations.
Outputs will include prevalence and levels of Salmonella, and Salmonella subtypes, at other points in the chain and the corresponding predicted public health impact, i.e., reduction in foodborne illnesses, of Salmonella control strategies.
In this way, the risk assessment models enable FSIS to assess risk management options.
Before any information is released to the public or disseminated to individuals beyond authorized users under the collaborative agreement, the collaborator must submit to USDA draft copies of all papers, publications and/or products to be reviewed, strictly for confidentiality purposes.
In addition, USDA will review draft papers, publications and/or products to ensure consistency with the scope of the purposes described above.
We encourage applications from multi-disciplinary teams, to ensure we have the broad expertise needed.
Applications from minority serving institutions are encouraged.
FSIS seeks a collaboration in the following areas:
1) Existing industry data.
FSIS is seeking to collaborate with researchers who can gather and analyze data from the chicken and turkey industries.
This would include data considered proprietary in nature.
FSIS 508 compliance rules must be adhered to when sharing information with FSIS.
FSIS considers data generated by producers and processors of poultry potentially useful in developing these production-to-consumption risk models.
For FSIS to effectively evaluate risk management options, it is essential to learn more about current prevalence and levels of Salmonella and Salmonella subtypes across the industry, the types of industry practices and food safety controls that are currently being used, and effects of these practices and controls.
The following are examples of the types of data that could be useful in developing a production-to-consumption process simulation risk assessment model to assess the effects of FSIS risk management options:
a) Preharvest i) Proportion and effectiveness of preharvest controls being used and whether these controls have different effects on different Salmonella subtypes (1) vaccination (2) biosecurity (3) feed (4) water treatments (5) probiotics/prebiotics (6) bird density (7) bedding management (8) waste management (9) other specific Salmonella control strategies on the farm ii) Proportion and types of pre-harvest testing and the results of such testing b) Postharvest i) Effectiveness of postharvest controls and whether these controls vary based on differences in subtypes (1) staging slaughter of more highly contaminated flocks (2) chemical interventions, high-pressure pasteurization, irradiation, ozone, or other treatments (refer to the FSIS Guideline for Controlling Salmonella in Raw Poultry:
FSIS-GD-2021-0005 (usda.gov) for additional guidance) ii) Types and results of testing (pathogens, indicator organisms) (1) products (2) frequency (3) serotyping (4) concentrations/levels (5) whole genome sequencing iii) Average monthly volume iv) Line speeds v) Incoming product specifications (1) Aerobic Plate Count (APC) load (2) Salmonella prevalence (3) Salmonella subtype vi) Type of laboratory support (e.g., data from accredited lab or whether AOAC-approved methods were used) vii) Process control indicators – results and consequences of testing for:
(1) APC (2) generic E.
coli (3) Salmonella (4) other viii) Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) validation and verification ix) Lotting practices x) Bird characteristics (e.g., age, weight, genotypic resistance to Salmonella enteric colonization) Because controls of levels and/or subtypes of Salmonella are possible risk management options, data related to levels or subtypes of Salmonella are especially important.
Collaborators should describe what and how much data they will analyze and how they will summarize the data in a form suitable for use as inputs to the risk assessment models.
Data sets should be complete.
FSIS encourages submissions from applicants who can provide data that are representative of the industry both geographically and seasonally.
Ideally data sets would represent large, small and very small establishments.
Additionally, collaborators should describe their relationships with the poultry industry (both chicken and turkey), their previous experience collecting and analyzing data, and how they will ensure that data they collect remain confidential.
Specifically, the collaborator may include excerpts of information in its research results for the USDA and/or for disclosure in USDA publications, BUT MAY NOT, under any circumstances:
(i) identify any retailer or manufacturer, (ii) disclose any retailer-identifiable or manufacturer-identifiable information, including specific brands or product names and/or (iii) disclose any market share data at the retailer, brand, or item level in any market.
FSIS understands that the data may be proprietary or viewed as confidential business information.
Pursuant to USDA's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations (7 CFR 1. 1 et seq.), FSIS is responsible for making the determination with regard to the disclosure or nondisclosure of information in agency records that has been submitted by a collaborator.
When, in the course of responding to a FOIA request, FSIS cannot readily determine whether the information obtained from a person is confidential business information, the Agency will seek to obtain and carefully consider the views of the submitter of the information and provide the submitter an opportunity to object to any decision to disclose the information.
FSIS will protect collaborators’ confidential business information from public disclosure to the extent authorized under FOIA and in conformity with USDA's FOIA regulations.
2) Dose Response:
An important part of the risk assessment models described above is how the dose of Salmonella to which people are exposed affects the probability of their becoming ill.
In the past, FSIS has used the dose-response relationship developed by the World Health Organization[1] to predict human illnesses.
This dose-response relationship, however, is based on combined information for all Salmonella subtypes, with no information on any subtype-specific dose-response.
In order to evaluate risk management options that consider the public health impact of controlling one or more specific Salmonella subtypes in poultry, FSIS seeks assistance developing a dose-response methodology that considers differences in virulence among Salmonella subtypes.
Applicants should describe their experience in developing dose-response relationships and describe one or more approaches that account for differences in subtype.
The collaborator will be expected to develop one or more methodologies for relating risk of illness to subtype- specific doses of Salmonella.
[1] Ad Hoc Expert Consultations on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods, Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods, FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy, 17 - 21 July 2000 Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods Please see document section for complete information on submission, review and cooperative agreement adminstration.
June 2022 – March 2023 A.
SUMMARY The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is the public health agency in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) responsible for ensuring the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products.
FSIS ensures food safety through the authorities of the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, and the Egg Products Inspection Act, as well as humane animal handling through the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act.
The Office of Public Health Science (OPHS)—one of many program areas supporting FSIS’ mission—brings public health leadership to USDA-FSIS to assure the establishment and support of scientifically sound food safety programs.
The OPHS Risk Assessment and Analytics Staff (RAAS) conducts scientific risk assessments and develops new analytic methods for assessing risks of biological and chemical hazards in meat, poultry and egg products that inform risk management decisions and risk communication activities.
RAAS’ scientific and technical analyses guide, support and enhance FSIS public health goals as they relate to regulatory initiatives, internal policy-making, data collection, research priorities, and the USDA-FSIS food safety goals.
FSIS recently announced it will develop a stronger and more comprehensive food safety framework for the control of Salmonella in poultry.
Several initiatives are underway to incorporate the latest science, data and laboratory technology into FSIS’s decision-making to identify ways to control Salmonella in poultry and reduce foodborne illness.
FSIS is developing two separate risk assessment models, in chicken and in turkey.
These production-to-consumption risk models will estimate reductions in foodborne illness attributed to chicken and to turkey resulting from control of Salmonella.
Specifically, the models will predict the impact of:
· controlling Salmonella prevalence, levels (enumeration), and subtypes of public health concern pre-harvest and post-harvest, · implementing preharvest controls, post-harvest controls, and combined pre- and post-harvest controls, and · establishing criteria limiting Salmonella prevalence, levels and/or subtypes, or requiring a specified reduction in a relevant indicator organism.
Inputs will include prevalence, levels, and subtypes of Salmonella at various points in the production-to-consumption chain, along with pre-harvest and post-harvest production practices.
FSIS will be able to use FSIS-generated data for some of the model inputs.
Other inputs may be informed by published scientific studies, or expert elicitations.
Outputs will include prevalence and levels of Salmonella, and Salmonella subtypes, at other points in the chain and the corresponding predicted public health impact, i.e., reduction in foodborne illnesses, of Salmonella control strategies.
In this way, the risk assessment models enable FSIS to assess risk management options.
Before any information is released to the public or disseminated to individuals beyond authorized users under the collaborative agreement, the collaborator must submit to USDA draft copies of all papers, publications and/or products to be reviewed, strictly for confidentiality purposes.
In addition, USDA will review draft papers, publications and/or products to ensure consistency with the scope of the purposes described above.
We encourage applications from multi-disciplinary teams, to ensure we have the broad expertise needed.
Applications from minority serving institutions are encouraged.
FSIS seeks a collaboration in the following areas:
1) Existing industry data.
FSIS is seeking to collaborate with researchers who can gather and analyze data from the chicken and turkey industries.
This would include data considered proprietary in nature.
FSIS 508 compliance rules must be adhered to when sharing information with FSIS.
FSIS considers data generated by producers and processors of poultry potentially useful in developing these production-to-consumption risk models.
For FSIS to effectively evaluate risk management options, it is essential to learn more about current prevalence and levels of Salmonella and Salmonella subtypes across the industry, the types of industry practices and food safety controls that are currently being used, and effects of these practices and controls.
The following are examples of the types of data that could be useful in developing a production-to-consumption process simulation risk assessment model to assess the effects of FSIS risk management options:
a) Preharvest i) Proportion and effectiveness of preharvest controls being used and whether these controls have different effects on different Salmonella subtypes (1) vaccination (2) biosecurity (3) feed (4) water treatments (5) probiotics/prebiotics (6) bird density (7) bedding management (8) waste management (9) other specific Salmonella control strategies on the farm ii) Proportion and types of pre-harvest testing and the results of such testing b) Postharvest i) Effectiveness of postharvest controls and whether these controls vary based on differences in subtypes (1) staging slaughter of more highly contaminated flocks (2) chemical interventions, high-pressure pasteurization, irradiation, ozone, or other treatments (refer to the FSIS Guideline for Controlling Salmonella in Raw Poultry:
FSIS-GD-2021-0005 (usda.gov) for additional guidance) ii) Types and results of testing (pathogens, indicator organisms) (1) products (2) frequency (3) serotyping (4) concentrations/levels (5) whole genome sequencing iii) Average monthly volume iv) Line speeds v) Incoming product specifications (1) Aerobic Plate Count (APC) load (2) Salmonella prevalence (3) Salmonella subtype vi) Type of laboratory support (e.g., data from accredited lab or whether AOAC-approved methods were used) vii) Process control indicators – results and consequences of testing for:
(1) APC (2) generic E.
coli (3) Salmonella (4) other viii) Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) validation and verification ix) Lotting practices x) Bird characteristics (e.g., age, weight, genotypic resistance to Salmonella enteric colonization) Because controls of levels and/or subtypes of Salmonella are possible risk management options, data related to levels or subtypes of Salmonella are especially important.
Collaborators should describe what and how much data they will analyze and how they will summarize the data in a form suitable for use as inputs to the risk assessment models.
Data sets should be complete.
FSIS encourages submissions from applicants who can provide data that are representative of the industry both geographically and seasonally.
Ideally data sets would represent large, small and very small establishments.
Additionally, collaborators should describe their relationships with the poultry industry (both chicken and turkey), their previous experience collecting and analyzing data, and how they will ensure that data they collect remain confidential.
Specifically, the collaborator may include excerpts of information in its research results for the USDA and/or for disclosure in USDA publications, BUT MAY NOT, under any circumstances:
(i) identify any retailer or manufacturer, (ii) disclose any retailer-identifiable or manufacturer-identifiable information, including specific brands or product names and/or (iii) disclose any market share data at the retailer, brand, or item level in any market.
FSIS understands that the data may be proprietary or viewed as confidential business information.
Pursuant to USDA's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations (7 CFR 1. 1 et seq.), FSIS is responsible for making the determination with regard to the disclosure or nondisclosure of information in agency records that has been submitted by a collaborator.
When, in the course of responding to a FOIA request, FSIS cannot readily determine whether the information obtained from a person is confidential business information, the Agency will seek to obtain and carefully consider the views of the submitter of the information and provide the submitter an opportunity to object to any decision to disclose the information.
FSIS will protect collaborators’ confidential business information from public disclosure to the extent authorized under FOIA and in conformity with USDA's FOIA regulations.
2) Dose Response:
An important part of the risk assessment models described above is how the dose of Salmonella to which people are exposed affects the probability of their becoming ill.
In the past, FSIS has used the dose-response relationship developed by the World Health Organization[1] to predict human illnesses.
This dose-response relationship, however, is based on combined information for all Salmonella subtypes, with no information on any subtype-specific dose-response.
In order to evaluate risk management options that consider the public health impact of controlling one or more specific Salmonella subtypes in poultry, FSIS seeks assistance developing a dose-response methodology that considers differences in virulence among Salmonella subtypes.
Applicants should describe their experience in developing dose-response relationships and describe one or more approaches that account for differences in subtype.
The collaborator will be expected to develop one or more methodologies for relating risk of illness to subtype- specific doses of Salmonella.
[1] Ad Hoc Expert Consultations on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods, Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods, FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy, 17 - 21 July 2000 Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods Please see document section for complete information on submission, review and cooperative agreement adminstration.
Obtain Full Opportunity Text:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-NS-22-020.html
Additional Information of Eligibility:
Academic institutions, relevant non-government organizations, independent consultants specialized in microbial risk assessments for food safety, and/or multi-disciplinary groups that bridge the areas of expertise and responsibilities are sought as a collaborator on this work.
Awardee must be a U. S. organization.
Full Opportunity Web Address:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-NS-22-020.html
Contact:
Agency Email Description:
direct email box
Agency Email:
Date Posted:
2022-03-02
Application Due Date:
Archive Date:
2022-05-15
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