Three federal agencies are joining forces on a new five-year, $15 million effort to address hunger and malnutrition in low- and middle-income countries.
USDA, FDA and the U.S. Agency for International Development announced the Food Safety for Food Security Partnership — short-handed as FS4FS — at the recent U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit. According to a USDA release, the effort will “support the development of sanitary and phytosanitary systems” in the 20 countries that are part of the U.S. government’s Feed the Future program.
Daniel Whitley, administrator of USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, said conversations at the summit involved many African leaders asking for “help in developing science- and risk-based measures and standards to ensure the supply and safety of their countries’ food.
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“Through the Food Safety for Food Security Partnership, we will work together to address these needs, which are vital to ensuring greater access to safe and nutritious food across Africa,” he said. “Strong food safety delivered through policies and institutions, as well as farmer, consumer and industry readiness, are critical to transforming agri-food systems.”
Dina Esposito, USAID's acting assistant administrator for the Bureau of Resilience and Food Security, said FS4FS will “build on Feed the Future’s successes and work with countries around the world to increase access to safe and nutritious foods and unlock trade opportunities.”
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