Source: FDA, 6/1/21 Today, the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration launched a challenge to spur the development of affordable,
tech-enabled traceability tools to help protect people and animals from
contaminated foods by enabling the rapid identification of their sources and
helping remove them from the marketplace as quickly as possible. The FDA New Era of Smarter Food Safety Low- or No-Cost Tech-Enabled Traceability Challenge advances a goal set forth
in the New Era of Smarter Food Safety blueprint,
released in July 2020, to encourage the development of creative financial
models for low- to no-cost traceability solutions that would enable food
producers of all sizes to participate in a scalable, cost-effective way.
Tech-enabled traceability is one of the foundational core elements of the New
Era initiative. However, affordability can be a barrier to the adoption of
tech-enabled traceability systems, especially for smaller companies. “Too many Americans suffer from foodborne illnesses every year. Making the food supply more digitally enabled and food more traceable will speed the response to outbreaks and deepen our understanding of what causes them and how to prevent them from happening again,” said Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock, M.D. “One of the FDA’s highest priorities is protecting consumers from foodborne illnesses. We hope to find new, innovative ways to encourage firms of all sizes to voluntarily adopt tracing technologies that can help our nation modernize the way we work together to determine possible sources of foodborne illnesses as quickly as possible to keep Americans safe.” Through this challenge, the agency
is asking food technology solution providers, public health advocates,
entrepreneurs and innovators across the human and animal food supply chain to
present food traceability solutions that utilize economic models that are
affordable, with costs that are proportional to the benefits received and can
scale to encourage widespread adoption. “Having digital information easily accessible is a key priority of the FDA’s New Era of Smarter Food Safety. Through this initiative, we are committed to helping ensure that even small companies can use and benefit from new tracing technologies,” said Frank Yiannas, deputy FDA commissioner for food policy and response. “Digitizing data at no- or low-cost through the use of creative financial models allows the entire food system to get smarter together.” The challenge invites submissions
for tech-enabled solutions that address the traceability needs and challenges
unique to one or more segments of the human and animal food supply chain:
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primary producers (such as entities involved in farming and
fishing); =
importers; =
manufacturers/processors; =
distributors (such as wholesalers, distribution centers and
repackers); and =
retailers and foodservice (such as retail food establishments
and restaurants). To provide maximum flexibility,
participants may offer solutions that are based on new or innovative models
that are affordable for smaller enterprises. However, the solutions can also be
based on existing or new scalable and cost-effective hardware, software or data
analytics platforms. The FDA will accept submissions from
June 1 through July 30 and intends to announce up to 12 winners at the end of
the challenge. A panel of judges from the federal government with experience in
the fields of technology, public health or the food industry will select the
winners based on how well solutions meet specific traceability challenges and
demonstrate innovation, usability, affordability, scalability and
interoperability. No cash prizes will be awarded, but the winners will have the opportunity to present their work publicly in a webinar planned for September and their videos will be posted for public viewing. The challenge is being overseen by the FDA’s Office of Food Policy and Response and administered by PrecisionFDA as
part of the America COMPETES
Reauthorization Act of 2010. For more information on how to join the
challenge, visit the registration page.
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