Issue to be addressed: Food Safety Program, related to Goal 4                         EFFECTIVE 7/1/04
The goal of the Food Safety Program is to develop or improve strategies for controlling or eliminating microbial pathogens (such as E. coli, Listeria and Salmonella) in foods, to apply those strategies to improve the safety and extend the safe shelf-life of food systems, to transfer the knowledge and technology to food industry professionals, and to significantly reduce food borne illness in South Carolina and the world.

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PERFORMANCE GOALS

Output Indicators:
- Refereed journal articles, presentations, patents, abstracts, awards, popular trade publications. - Conducting workshops, symposia, training sessions.
- Conducting workshops, symposia, training sessions.  
- Submitted and funded grant proposals targeting food safety.

Outcome Indicators:
-Safer food supply with fewer foodborne illnesses.
- Innovative processing and packaging techniques used by the food industry to improve the safety and extend the safe shelf-life of food
- Trained professionals with increased knowledge of food safety issues and increased ability to address them.

Key Program Components:
Research will focus on the isolation of new antimicrobial compounds for use in foods, the development of antimicrobial packaging systems, the development of new food processing techniques, and the education of food handlers and processors on food safety.

Internal and External Linkages:
Departments of Food Science/Human Nutrition, Packaging Science, Microbiology and Molecular Medicine, Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Chemical Engineering, Biological Engineering, Environmental Toxicology, SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, SC Department of Agriculture, Food Industry Association of South Carolina, North Carolina State University, University of Georgia, Auburn University, Alabama A&M, Texas A&M, and the Greenville Hospital System.

Target Audiences:
Food processors, food service operators, food handlers, food regulatory agencies, food packaging suppliers, food production personnel, consumers.

Program Duration:
Five Years