Thursday, November 21, 2024
11/21/2024
Project Abstract The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Office of Regulatory Affairs (ORA), Office of Partnership (OP), is announcing the availability of cooperative agreements to be awarded under Limited Competition to State, local, territorial, or tribal retail food regulatory programs. The intended outcome of this FOA is to advance efforts for a nationally integrated food safety system through the conformance with and advancement of the Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards (VNRFRPS or Retail Program Standards). The VNRFRPS apply to the operation and management of a retail food regulatory program that is focused on the reduction of risk factors known to contribute to foodborne illness and the promotion of industry action to achieve active managerial control of these risk factors. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) Food and Feed Safety Division (FFSD) licenses and inspects approximately 8,900 food facilities including 7,000 retail food establishments in Minnesota and delegates and oversees retail food inspection authority to seven local health agencies in the state. The seven local health agencies license and inspect approximately 2,200 retail facilities under a delegation agreement with MDA. The FFSD has a dedicated Retail Food Program responsible for retail food licensing, compliance, and inspection activities. The Retail Food Program has one food program manager, four food inspection supervisors, and twenty-four dedicated field inspection staff. FFSD has an additional twenty staff that fully or partially support the Retail Food Program in administrative capacities. The MDA, as part of this application, will create a comprehensive Strategic Plan that outlines the milestones and goals needed to conduct self-assessment updates for Standards 3, 5, 6, and 7. Other goals of the strategic plan include continued work on Standard 4, as well as policy and procedure maintenance for all standards.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
