RFA-FD-23-019- Development and Maintenance of Human and Animal Food Rapid Response
Teams (U2F)
Project Summary
The objective of this multi-component project is to support a nationally integrated human and
animal food (HAF) safety system through the maintenance of the Washington State Rapid
Response Team (RRT) from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026. The Washington State Department
of Agriculture (WSDA) plans to continue the use of the RRT to better unify responses by public
health agencies to human and animal food illness outbreaks. The WSDA also plans to continue
its conformity with current and future revisions of the RRT milestones/3-years plan, and the
related Manufactured Food Regulatory Program Standards (MFRPS).
In addition to maintaining the core regulatory and response requirements that have been
established through MFRPS and RRT, WSDA plans to continue its efforts to identify and
strengthen integral professional relationships between HAF safety partners including Federal,
state, local, and tribal stakeholders. These stakeholders represent industries and skills such as
agriculture, public health, regulatory, laboratory, academia, and emergency response.
Through a multi-modal approach, WSDA anticipates the ability to contribute to an integrated
food/feed safety system in a standardized and efficient manner to better protect the public
health of Washingtonians and the U.S. population.