July 13, 2001

Morris E. Potter, DVM has been named as the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), Office of Science, Lead Scientist for Epidemiology. As Lead Scientist for Epidemiology Dr. Potter will work closely with CDC, USDA agencies, and international organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to increase epidemiological and surveillance capabilities in areas such as infectious diseases, nutritional well-being, and foodborne environmental contaminants.

Dr. Potter brings to FDA 30 years of experience in the field of epidemiology, foodborne illness, and public health policy. During his career he has served in various veterinary epidemiologist positions within both the federal and state public health programs. Dr. Potter served as the Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Food Safety Office and has served on a number of national and international professional committees and has held the position of Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Foodborne Disease Surveillance.

Dr. Potter will be located at the FDA Regional Office in Atlanta, Georgia.

On June 26, FDA published a final rule in the Federal Register amending the food additive regulations to provide for the safe use of ozone when used as a gas or dissolved in water as an antimicrobial agent on food, including meat and poultry. This action was in response to a petition filed by the Electric Power Research Institute, Agriculture and Food Technology Alliance.

A copy of the final rule is available on the FDA Web site at
http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/Dockets/98fr/062601a.htm.

For additional information contact Robert Martin (rmartin@cfsan.fda.gov).

Hypertext updated by cjm 2001-JUL-16