Associations Recognized for Commitment to Consumer Food Safety Education

Seven food industry associations were recognized for more than 10 years of participation and $2.5 million in cumulative contributions to the nonprofit U.S. Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE) at the 2010 Food Safety Education Conference, which was held March 23 to March 26 in Atlanta.

The associations honored are the American Egg Board (AEB), American Dietetic Association (ADA), Food Marketing Institute (FMI) Foundation, National Chicken Council (NCC), National Pork Board (NPB), National Turkey Federation (NTF) and Produce Marketing Association (PMA).

“The enduring commitment of these organizations, together with the federal government and consumer advocates, has enabled the partnership to teach millions of Americans of all ages the essential measures to keep their food safe,” said Shelley Feist, executive director of the PFSE. “They made it possible for the partnership to develop and launch ‘Fight BAC!,’ ‘Be Food Safe’ and other free programs for public health and nutrition educators.”

Fight BAC! (www.fightbac.org) teaches the four core safe food handling practices: clean hands and surfaces often, separate to avoid cross-contamination; cook food to safe internal temperatures as measured with a food thermometer, and chill, or refrigerate foods promptly. Be Food Safe (www.befoodsafe.org), developed by the PFSE to involve retailers in consumer food safety education, complements USDA’s “Be Food Safe” campaign. Additional campaigns and materials were developed around topics including safe produce handling, holiday food safety (www.holidayfoodsafety.org), and recall basics (www.recallbasics.org) for consumers. These campaigns include consumer resources such as brochures, graphics, fact sheets, newsletters, and multimedia presentations.

The PFSE works closely to develop and disseminate campaigns with its contributing partners and federal liaisons at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“The partnership is a very unique nonprofit,” explained Feist. “Contributing members provide the core of [its] operational funding, as well as expert voluntary service and channels for disseminating food safety messages and materials.”

The PFSE unites industry associations; professional societies in food science, nutrition and health; consumer groups; the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA); the Environmental Protection Agency; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to educate the public about safe food handling and preparation.
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