USA: Federal Agencies sign MoU to leverage expertise during foodborne outbreak investigations

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will provide a more comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach to address foodborne health hazards associated with meat, poultry and processed egg products.

The MOU is part of the One Health initiative, a concept that inextricably links the health of humans, animals and the environment. It embraces the idea that a disease impacting the health of humans, animals and the environment can be best solved through improved communication, cooperation and collaboration across disciplines and institutions.

The MOU outlines mutual roles and responsibilities for the training of personnel and the planning of interagency assessment of FSIS-regulated establishments as part of foodborne illness investigations and health hazard evaluations. The MOU does not modify any existing interagency collaborative work, which includes illness cluster and outbreak investigations.