Project Number: 1235-52000-051-22
Project Type: Grant

Start Date: Sep 29, 2007
End Date: Sep 28, 2012

Objective:
The purpose of this cooperative agreement is to provide quality control, analytical services and technical expertise for USDA-initiated laboratory contracts and other laboratory projects to improve the quality of data in the National Nutrient Database.

Approach:
The proposed effort will utilize multiple tasks including reference material development and handling to evaluate offerors and monitor contractors, preparation and shipment of food samples to contract laboratories to obtain analytical data, development and validation of analytical methods as coordinated with NDL, and initial processing of nutrient data from the contract laboratories. In addition, this agreement includes consultations with NDL and contract laboratories on issues of methodology, sample analysis, handling and storage, and it may include analysis of specific nutrients in selected foods.