========================================================================= Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2001 20:48:37 EDT Reply-To: EdNet@FOODSAFETY.GOV Sender: National Food Safety Educator's Network From: EDNET@FOODSAFETY.GOV Organization: National Food Safety Educator's Network Subject: EdNet Update April 2001 * * * * National Food Safety Educator's Network * * * * * * * * EdNet-L@foodsafety.gov * * * * EdNet is an electronic newsletter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), providing updates on food safety activities to educators and others concerned about food safety. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ IN THIS ISSUE FIGHT BAC!(tm) CONSUMER ADVISORY RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS NEWS FROM THE USDA/FDA FOODBORNE ILLNESS EDUCATION INFORMATION CENTER MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES INDUSTRY INFO FEEDBACK SUBSCRIBE FIGHT BAC!(tm) The BAC! Store Visit the BAC! Store, your on-line catalog of original Fight BAC!(tm) materials. New items: BAC Mousepads and BAC Pencils and Cups! The Fight BAC!(tm) brochure prices have been cut in half! Now just $10/100! The BAC Store contains many other useful items including the Fight BAC! Presenter's Guide, developed for teaching children in grades K-3 the importance of safe food handling practices, Fight BAC!(tm) puppets ($15 each), magnets, stickers, posters and much more! http://www.fightbac.org E-mail: fightbaced@mindspring.com CONSUMER ADVISORY FDA's Consumer Advisory on "How to Safely Handle Refrigerated Ready-to-Eat Foods and Avoid Listeriosis" Because L.monocytogenes can grow at refrigerator temperatures and is found in ready-to-eat foods, FDA's Center for Food safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) issued an advisory to all consumers on how to reduce the risk of Listeriosis. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/adlister.html RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS New! Video News Release (VNR) for Volunteer Food Handlers Great cooks at home may not know how to safely prepare and store large quantities of food for group functions. The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has some advice for a safe and successful group event. "Cooking for Groups" is a 12-minute VNR plus B-roll that takes consumers through the steps necessary to prepare and serve food for a safe and successful group event. The VNR was produced as part of the "Cooking for Groups"-A Volunteer's Guide to Food Safety" educational package. The educational package as well as the VNR can be viewed on the FSIS Web site: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/cfg/cfg.htm To receive the VNR (VHS or Beta), forward your requests with your name and mailing address to: E-mail: fsis.outreach@usda.gov Preliminary Foodnet Data on the Incidence of Foodborne Illnesses-- Selected Sites, United States, 2000 April 6, 2001, MMWR Weekly 50(13);241-6 Each year in the United States, an estimated 76 million persons contract foodborne illnesses. CDC's Emerging Infections Program Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) collects data about nine foodborne diseases in eight U.S. sites to quantify and monitor foodborne illnesses. This report describes preliminary surveillance data for 2000 and compares them with 1996--1999 data. The data indicate the relative frequency of diagnosed infections, demonstrate substantial regional variation, and suggest trends in incidence. FoodNet provides data for monitoring foodborne illnesses and interventions designed to reduce them. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5013a1.htm Economic Research Service (ERS) Briefing Rooms Visit USDA's ERS' Briefing Room on Consumer Food Safety Behavior. The Consumer Food Safety Behavior Briefing Room is just one Briefing Room that the ERS Web site offers on a large variety of topics. Each Briefing Room offers in-depth discussion synthesizing ERS research and the economic issues that frame the analysis. Also included are recent ERS research development, readings and data, questions and answers, and a collection of other ERS products and services addressing the issue. http://www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/ New! FSIS Backgrounder "Protecting the Public From Foodborne Illness: The Food Safety and Inspection Service" is a new backgrounder from USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) that describes the mission of the FSIS. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/background/fsisgeneral.htm Thermy(tm) Hits the Airways Listen for Thermy(tm) message, "It's Safe to Bite When the Temperature is Right!" on your favorite local radio station. USDA/FSIS is distributing a 30-second radio public service announcement (PSA) on its campaign to increase use of food thermometers by consumers. Help in this promotion and request a CD of the radio PSA for use in your educational events. Take a free CD to your local radio station along with a Thermy(tm) kit and help promote food safety in your community. For a free radio PSA: E-mail: fsis.outreach@usda.gov USDA/FSIS is also releasing the Thermy(tm) TV public service announcement to Cable stations nationwide. For a free 30-second PSA in VHS or BETA SP (TV quality), request a copy with your intended use to: E-mail: fsis.outreach@usda.gov New! FSIS Food Safety Fact Sheet USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announces a new food safety fact sheet: "7 Food Safety Steps for Successful Community Meals," April 2001. Follow these simple steps and make an event such as a family reunion or a community gathering safe and successful! http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/cfg/7steps_1.pdf Graduate Fellowship Grants Program FY2001/2002 Application Kits for New Grants The FY2001 Request for Proposals contains two parts. Part I is a request for proposals for new grants in the Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate Fellowship Grants Program. Part II only applies to currently active grants. The deadlines are: May 11, 2001 for the letter of intent and July 10, 2001 for the submission of a proposal. http://faeis.tamu.edu/hep/menus/msgn~~1.htm USDA/APHIS Update: Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) On March 30, USDA's Animal Plant Health Inspection Agency (APHIS) announced tighter restrictions on used farm equipment entering the United States. http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/press/2001/03/fmdfarm.txt NEWS FROM THE USDA/FDA FOODBORNE ILLNESS EDUCATION INFORMATION CENTER Food Safety Posters from the National Food Service Management Institute (NFSMI) The Food Safety Mini-Poster Kit from NFSMI contains fourteen 81/2" x 11 color posters and one 251/2" x 323/4" color poster. Topics include hand washing, personal appearance and hygiene, food storage, temperatures, and food preparation. All these can be yours for $3. Or, you can download them through the NFSMI Web site at http://www.nfsmi.org/Information/postindx.htm To order posters call (662) 915-7658 or (800) 321-3054, or order via the Web site at http://www.nfsmi.org/. Use order # EX50-00. Check out other food safety training materials at the Foodborne Illness Educational Materials and HACCP Training and Resources databases at: http://www.nal.usda.gov/foodborne/ MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Sponsors Public Health Grand Rounds - Registration is Open! In 1999, a new infectious disease agent appeared on the North American continent, one that threatens human and animal life: West Nile virus. This program will emphasize the importance of a strong public health infrastructure and a greater understanding of vector-borne diseases. Join us to discuss the efforts of local, regional and state health agencies in Massachusetts as they prepare to respond to and minimize the threat of West Nile virus. "Preparing for West Nile Virus: Will Your Community Be Next?" is the seventh program in a series of national broadcasts that focus on contemporary public health challenges. The program will be conducted on May 23 at 2:00 - 3:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time. Continuing education credit for various health professions will be offered based on one hour of instruction. To be eligible, you must complete an online registration and evaluation. This broadcast may be viewed at a satellite downlink site near you or via the Internet. If you need assistance in finding a site close to you, please contact us by: E-mail: grand.rounds@sph.unc.edu Telephone: 919.843.9261. Or you may want to contact your local site facilitator to ask them to register their site for the program. If you do not have Internet access, please seek assistance from a public resource such as a library. Target Audience: public health leaders, managers, and professionals from local and state health departments, federal agencies, hospitals, clinics, academic institutions, managed care organizations, and others who seek to increase awareness of the factors contributing to West Nile virus and the public health response. Sponsors: School of Public Health, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Registration and program information: http://www.PublicHealthGrandRounds.unc.edu. Second Joint Symposium on Food Safety and Nutrition: Current Issues in Food Biotechnology The Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN) announces the Second Joint Symposium on Food Safety and Nutrition: Current Issues in Food Biotechnology. The symposium is sponsored by the Central Science Laboratory (CSL), York, UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN), U.S. Food and Drug Administration/University of Maryland and will take place July 11-13 at the University of Maryland's Inn and Conference Center in Adelphi, Maryland. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/jiftech.html Food Allergen Partnership In October of 1998, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) formed a partnership with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (WDATCP). This Partnership was in response to an increase of allergen-related recalls and concerns of controls of cross-contamination of undeclared allergen residue. The goals of the Partnership were to eliminate duplicate inspection and sample collections, ensure uniform enforcement, obtain current information on allergen awareness and provide feedback on useful allergy control information and training to the food industry. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/alrgpart.html INDUSTRY INFO Food Safety Fellows Program--Positions Still Available USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service is currently recruiting for 3 scientists who have valuable expertise and knowledge in "cutting-edge scientific and technical" areas and can apply "state of the art" methodologies to studies associated with food safety and public health. For information: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OM/HRD/fellows/default.htm "Bacteriological Analytical Manual" (BAM) available on-line: The CFSAN (FDA) Staff College announced that the "Bacteriological Analytical Manual" (BAM) is now available on the Web. The BAM presents the Agency's preferred laboratory procedures for microbiological analyses of foods and cosmetics. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~ebam/bam-toc.html FEEDBACK If you have any comments or suggestions regarding this issue, please contact us via e-mail at: ednet@foodsafety.gov. SUBSCRIBE Please forward this issue to colleagues and friends and tell them how to subscribe. Thank you for sharing this update. 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