I was delighted to welcome Steve Musser, from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to the FSA recently.
Steve, who is Director of the Office of Regulatory Science at the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, made an excellent presentation at one of our regular Chief Scientist Lectures. These lectures are held to keep FSA staff up to date with what’s going on science-wise around the world.
I was particularly interested to find that the FDA and FSA are thinking along similar lines about the need to develop new ways of responding rapidly and appropriately to food incidents.
Steve said that the FDA recognised that there was a need for 'innovative approaches' and that the FDA was investigating Whole Genome Sequencing 'to see if it will provide faster identification of new and emerging hazards'.
The FSA is, similarly, investigating the use of next generation sequencing approaches where appropriate in work we are funding.
Steve mentioned in addition the need for partnership working to foster and support the implementation of modern food safety practices. That’s something with which I also agree.
The famour Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw reportedly said that the UK and US were 'two countries separated by the same language'. Not, thankfully, when it comes to the language of science.
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