Progress of Strategies Developed and Implemented by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for MFRPS Maintenance and Food Protection Task Force

Overall Project Summary/Abstract The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) is seeking funding from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under RFA-FD-23-027 to support the maintenance of Virginia’s Manufactured Food Regulatory Program Standards (MFRPS) and Food Protection Task Force (FPTF) Projects. The VDACS Food Safety Program meets all eligibility requirements for this funding opportunity, has a current food safety inspection contract with the FDA, and an active FPTF. The amount of funding requested is $306,000 per year, a total of $918,000 over the three-year project period. Since first obtaining these funds in 2009, the VDACS Food Safety Program has made great strides to advance efforts toward a nationally integrated food safety system supported by high-quality regulatory programs. Virginia’s Manufactured Food Program achieved full implementation and full conformance of all ten standards in August 2019. A reduced-scale, remote audit of Standards 2, 3, and 6 was conducted in July 2021. The results of the assessment indicated that the VDACS Food Safety Program maintained full conformance status with the 2016 MFRPS. The Program has a current food safety inspection contract with the FDA and has maintained this contract for several years. Furthermore, the Program’s Field Operations Manual (FOM) that contains the procedures used by the field staff to perform their duties was created and implemented in line with the MFRPS. The Virginia FPTF’s diverse membership is comprised of stakeholders from across the state and includes representatives from VDACS, the Virginia Department of Health, the Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services, Virginia Tech, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The VA FPTF continues to extend membership invitations to stakeholders from regulatory agencies, industry, academia, and consumer groups; works to develop educational support training/exercise opportunities; and hosts periodic educational and training opportunities regarding pertinent food safety topics for the Commonwealth.