The National Integrated
Food Safety Initiative - 2005 Project Summaries
Arizona
Title: Biofilm Production and the Colonization
of Broiler Chickens with Campylobacter Jejuni
Principal Investigator: Lynn A. Joens
Institution: University of Arizona
Department of Veterinary Science & Microbiology
1117 E. Lowell St. Building 90, Room 318
Tucson, AZ 85721
Telephone: (520) 621-4148
Fax: (520) 621-6366
E-mail: joens@ag.arizona.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $600,000
Description: This research will evaluate
recent work that has demonstrated the presence
of Campylobacter jejuni in biofilms colonizing
the nipple drinkers of poultry houses.
California
Title: Enhancing the Microbial Safety of
Fresh and Fresh-Cut Melon
Principal Investigator: Trevor V. Suslow
Institution: University of California, Davis
Department of Plant Sciences
148 Asmundson Hall
Davis, CA 95616-8631
Telephone: (530) 754-8313
Fax: (530) 752-9659
E-mail: tvsuslow@ucdavis.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 12
Award: $44,295
Description: This research will determine
practical interventions to disinfect fresh
melons and prevent contamination and outgrowth
of human pathogens in fresh-cut melon products
without adversely affecting quality or shelf-life.
Colorado
Title: Compliance and Training for Specified
Risk Material Removal in Beef Meat Products
Principal Investigator: Mo D. Salman
Institution: Colorado State University
Department of Clinical Sciences
Environmental Health Bldg.,Rm. 148B
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1681
Telephone: (970) 491-7950
Fax: (970) 491-1889
E-mail: m.d.salman@colostate.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 24
Award: $354,303
Description: The current level of compliance
for removal of specified risk material from
beef meat products will be evaluated. Interactive
multimedia training modules will be developed
and training sessions will be conducted throughout
the country.
Colorado
Title: Understanding and Controlling Listeria
monocytogenes Transmission Through Ready-To-Eat
Meat Products from Processing Plant to Consumer
Principal Investigator: John N. Sofos
Institution: Colorado State University
Department of Animal Sciences
1171 Campus Delivery
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1171
Telephone: (970) 491-7703
Fax: (970) 491-0278
E-mail: john.sofos@colostate.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 48
Award: $2,000,000
Description: This is a Special Emphasis
Grant, involving a multi-institutional, multidisciplinary,
and collaborative effort among scientists
from several institutions and states. The
project will include research, education
and outreach components aimed at reducing
the risk of Ready to eat (RTE) meat and poultry
products associated with listeriosis, by
intervening at the processing, foodservice,
and consumer levels.
Georgia
Title: National Center for Home Food Processing
and Preservation
Principal Investigator: Elizabeth L. Andress
Institution: University of Georgia
Department of Foods and Nutrition
208 Hoke Smith Annex
Athens, GA 30602-4356
Telephone: (706) 542-3773
Fax: (706) 542-1979
E-mail: eandress@uga.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $595,262
Description: The overall goals of this project
are to expand communication of home food
preservation recommendations through the
use of the existing National Center for Home
Food Preservation website, and to improve
the knowledge and skills of food preservation
educators as well as consumers.
Iowa
Title: Impact of Employee Training on Mitigating
Contamination in Retail Food Service Operations
Principal Investigator: Jeannie Sneed
Institution: Iowa State University
Hotel, Restaurant, & Institution Management
31 MacKay Hall
Ames, IA 50011-1120
Telephone: (515) 294-8474
Fax: (515) 294-6364
E-mail: jsneed@iastate.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $532,224
Description: This project will identify
and implement employee training strategies
to mitigate contamination in selected retail
foodservice operations (day care centers,
schools, assisted-living facilities, and
restaurants) based on observed employee hygiene,
food handling practices, and microbiological
data.
Iowa
Title: Incidence and Ecology of Macrolide-Resistant
Campylobacter in Chickens and Turkeys
Principal Investigator: Qijing Zhang
Institution: Iowa State University
Dept. of Veterinary Microbiology
2180 Veterinary Medicine Bldg.
Ames, IA 50011
Telephone: (515) 294-2038
Fax: (515) 294-8500
E-mail: zhang123@iastate.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $599,999
Description: Macrolide antibiotics, including
erythromycin, are widely used for growth
promotion and therapeutic purposes in animal
production. However, little is known regarding
the impact of macrolide usage on the emergence
and persistence of macrolide-resistant Campylobacter
jejuni on poultry farms.
Michigan
Title: A Risk-Based Approach to Determine "Best
Consumed by" Dates to Control Exposure
to Listeria Monocytogenes in Delicatessen
Meats
Principal Investigator: Ewen C.D. Todd
Institution: Michigan State University
National Food Safety and Toxicology Center
165 Food Safety Building
East Lansing, MI 48824-1302
Telephone: (517) 432-3100-107
Fax: (517) 432-2310
E-mail: toddewen@cvm.msu.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $599,999
Description: Listeriosis, a bacterial foodborne
infection caused by Listeria monocytogenes,
is a significant foodborne disease in the
U.S. with about 2,500 cases a year in over
500 fatalities. Although some control measures
seem to be effective, risk assessments continue
to implicate delicatessen meats as one of
the most likely foods to cause listeriosis.
Minnesota
Title: NCFPD-AFDO Project to Support and
Promote Inter-Governmental Collaboration
on Food Protection and Defense
Principal Investigator: Craig W. Hedberg
Institution: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Division of Environmental and Occupational Health
420 Delaware Street S.E.
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Telephone: (612) 626-4757
Fax: (612) 626-4837
E-mail: hedbe005@umn.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 48
Award: $2,000,000
Description: This is a Special Emphasis
Grant, involving a multi-institutional, multidisciplinary,
and collaborative effort among scientists
from several institutions and states. Eighty-five
to ninety percent of food safety inspections
are conducted by state and local regulatory
agencies, which will also provide the bulk
of laboratory testing of food and environmental
samples during an intentional contamination
event. This project will develop a network
between the National Center for Food Protection
and Defense and the Association of Food and
Drug Officials to facilitate communication
among local, state, and federal facilities.
Mississippi
Title: Identifying Risk Factors and Developing
Educational Strategies to Ameliorate Foodborne
Diseases in Rural Mississippi
Principal Investigator: Victor N. Njiti
Institution: Alcorn State University
Department of Agriculture
1000 ASU Drive, #352
Alcorn State, MS 39096
Telephone: (601) 877-2446
Fax: (601) 877-6694
E-mail: vicnji@lorman.alcorn.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $100,000
Description: This project is designed to
identify knowledge gaps and other factors
limiting the adoption of Good Agricultural
Practices (GAPs) among limited-resource farmers
in rural Mississippi.
New Jersey
Title: Food Biosecurity: Modeling the Health,
Economic, Social, and Psychological Consequences
of Intentional and Unintentional Food Contamination
Principal Investigator: William Hallman
Institution: Rutgers;The State University of New Jersey
ASB III, 3 Rutgers Plaza
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Telephone: (732) 932-1966 x 3103
Fax: (732) 932-9544
E-mail: hallman@aesop.rutgers.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $2,000,000
Description: This is a Special Emphasis
Grant, involving a multi-institutional, multidisciplinary,
and collaborative effort among scientists
from several institutions and states. The
project is designed to improve food biosecurity
through enhanced threat prevention and response,
risk management and communication, and public
education efforts.
New York
Title: An Internet Training Program on Sanitation,
Good Manufacturing, and Hygienic Practices
for Food Processors, Wholesalers and Warehouses
Principal Investigator: Kenneth L. Gall
Institution: Cornell University
New York Sea Grant Extension Program
146 Suffolk Hall
Stony Brook, NY 11794-5002
Telephone: (631) 632-8730
Fax: (631) 632-8216
E-mail: klg9@cornell.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $444,655
Description: The goal of this project is
to develop a national Internet-based distance
education training program on sanitation,
good manufacturing practices, and good hygienic
practices for production employees who work
in food processing, wholesale and warehouse
firms.
North Dakota
Title: Food Safety Education in the 21st
Century: Understanding and Improving Food
Handling Knowledge and Behavior Among Hard-To-Reach
Audiences
Principal Investigator: Julie A. Garden-Robinson
Institution: North Dakota State University
Department of Health, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences
EML 351, Centennial Blvd.
Fargo, ND 58105-5057
Telephone: (701) 231-7187
Fax: (701) 231-7453
E-mail: jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $567,339
Description: The major objective of this
project is to collect and asses data in refugee
and other minority communities where information
on food handling and food safety is limited.
Ohio
Title: Incidence, Significance, and Control
of Listeria monocytogenes in the Home Environment
Principal Investigator: Lydia Claire Medeiros
Institution: Ohio State University
Department of Human Nutrition
1787 Neil Avenue, 331 A Campbell Hall
Columbus, OH 43210-1295
Telephone: (614) 292-2699
Fax: (614) 292-8880
E-mail: medeiros.1@osu.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $599,984
Description: The focus of these studies
are Listeria monocytogenes (LM) contamination
in households and the impact of pathogen
contact on adult and youth residents.
Ohio
Title: Safety of Foods Processed by Four
Alternative Processing Technologies
Principal Investigator: Sudhir K. Sastry
Institution: The Ohio State University
Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering
590 Woody Hayes Drive
Columbus, OH 43210
Telephone: (614) 292-3508
Fax: (614) 292-9448
E-mail: sastry.2@osu.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 12
Award: $436,188
Description: This research will determine
the impact of 4 emerging alternative processing
technologies on food safety. The 4 technologies
include pulsed electric field, high pressure
processing, ohmic heating, and microwave
heating.
Rhode Island
Title: Food Safety Education for High School
and Transition Special Needs Students
Principal Investigator: Lori F. Pivarnik
Institution: University of Rhode Island
Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences
530 Liberty Lane
West Kingston, RI 02892
Telephone: (401) 874-2972
Fax: (401) 874-2994
E-mail: pivarnik@uri.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $590,439
Description: The overall goal of this project
will be to develop food safety education
materials for use by teachers of special
education high school and transition students.
Tennessee
Title: Implementing a Dynamic Interdisciplinary
Food Safety Curriculum Targeted at Middle
School Students
Principal Investigator: Frances Ann Draughon
Institution: University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Department Food Science and Technology
2605 River Road, 105 Food Safety and Processing Bldg.
Knoxville, TN 37996
Telephone: (865) 946-1111
Fax: (865) 974-2750
E-mail: draughon@utk.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $583,750
Description: The objective of this project
is to provide effective food safety education
to young consumers using a food safety-centered
curriculum for core subject areas that can
be used in middle school classrooms.
Texas
Title: Improving the Safety of Complex Food
Items Using Electron Beam Technology
Principal Investigator: Rosana G. Moreira
Institution: Texas A&M University, College Station
Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering
310 Scoates Hall
College Station, TX 77843-2117
Telephone: (979) 847-8794
Fax: (979) 845-3932
E-mail: moreira@tamu.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 12
Award: $164,013
Description: This research will develop
a dosimetry technique for fruits and vegetables
in bulk or fresh cut/sliced based on imaging
processing and computer simulation. A protocol
for surface and in-depth irradiation of fruits
and vegetables will be developed.
Utah
Title: Collaborating Across Boundaries in
Retail - Foodservice Food Safety
Principal Investigator: Brian A. Nummer
Institution: Utah State University
Nutrition and Food Science Department
750 N 1200 E
Logan, UT 84322-8700
Telephone: (435) 797-2116
Fax: (435) 797-2379
E-mail: briann@ext.usu.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 18
Award: $47,913
Description: This project is designed to
improve the safety of foods that are served
at retail and foodservice operations around
the country through a conference entitled “Collaborating
Across Boundaries in Rtail - Foodservice
Food safety”.
Virginia
Title: Efficacy of Post-Processing Interventions
for the Reduction of Listeria Monocytogenes
on Frankfurters
Principal Investigator: Robert C. Williams
Institution: Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
Department of Food Science and Technology
124 FST Building (0418)
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0418
Telephone: (540) 231-4106
Fax: (540) 231-9293
E-mail: rcwillia@vt.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 36
Award: $599,895
Description: This research will assist meat
processors and food regulatory agencies in
educating consumers about ways to control
foodborne illness-causing bacteria in ready-to-eat
(RTE) meat products such as luncheon meat
and frankfurters.
Virginia
Title: Norwalk Virus Inactivation by High
Hydrostatic Pressure Processing: A Comprehensive
and Integrated Program for Research and Outreach
Principal Investigator: George J. Flick
Institution: Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
Department of Food Science and Technology
Virginia Tech-0418
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Telephone: (540) 231-6965
Fax: (540) 231-9293
E-mail: flickg@vt.edu
Project Start Date: 9/30/2005
Duration in Months: 24
Award: $600,000
Description: This research will determine
whether Hydrostatic Pressure Processing (HPP)
is effective in eliminating norovirus from
oysters, a food commonly implicated in norovirus
transmission.
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