Since 2016, the Food Safety Network (FSN), a partnership between USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has provided developing countries with the tools and training to reach international standards for agricultural trade.  This sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regulatory capacity building supports the U.S. Government Global Food Security Strategy’s goals of improving food security, reducing poverty, and reducing malnutrition.

The Foreign Agricultural Service joined with Texas A&M University, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), FDA, the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS), and USAID to develop a suite of online training courses. This past March, FSN launched its 16th distance learning module with the goal of teaching how to apply science-based risk analysis concepts to analyze food safety challenges, as well as meet SPS Agreement obligations.

During food safety month, FSN is releasing an eight-part blog series on different technical topics from the Food Safety Distance Learning Module. Below are the topics:

• From Reactive to Proactive: How Modern Food Safety Systems Support Economic Growth, Public Health, and Trade
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 1
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 2
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 3
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 4
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 5
• Core Guiding Principles of a Food Control System Series: Part 6
• Leveraging the Core Guiding Principles to Modernize One’s Food Safety Control System

Want to learn more about concepts within food safety? Check out our free, self-paced, online Food Safety Distance Learning Module which explores the history of the United States food safety system, the value of a modern food safety system, all of the core principles of a national food control system, and concludes with a case study that allows learners to walk through a fictional country’s journey to modernize their food safety system. Visit spscourses.com today to sign up for a free account and access this module and so much more! Visit the FSN home page to learn more.