The center will be a cooperative research effort with the university's Western Institute for Food Safety and Security. It will be the first Food and Drug Administration food safety center to address the food safety needs specific to California and the Western United States. Three other FDA food-safety research centers are located in Maryland, Illinois and Mississippi.
"The new FDA center for food safety will play an important role in identifying potential threats and finding solutions to ensure the security of our food supply," said Sen. Diane Feinstein. "This is the first FDA research presence west of the Mississippi, and I am proud that it will be located in California."
"I want to thank and commend Sen. Feinstein for her leadership and support for the FDA Western Center for Food Safety and Defense," said UC Davis Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef. "By integrating the food safety mission of the FDA with the scientific expertise of UC Davis, the center will benefit California and the rest of the nation that depends on California agriculture for a safe and wholesome food supply."
The $1 million allocation will enable the Food and Drug Administration to establish collaborative research programs among its three existing food safety laboratories and the new center, as well as identify collaborators who will join the center.
The center will focus its immediate research efforts on four areas of emphasis:
Pre-harvest food safety and security
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