U.S. Food and Drug Administration
rule

The Office of Food Protection

Topics on this Page

Office Mission

The Office of Food Protection provides advice and council on strategic and substantive agency-wide domestic and imported food related matters. The Office has been charged with developing and implementing an agency-wide, visionary strategy for food protection and an agency-wide approach to promoting health via foods.

Major Functions

Food Protection Activities

  • Develop an agency-wide, visionary strategy for food protection as a comprehensive, integrated, global trajectory to an optimal national foods system for FDA regulated food.  In the strategy, characterize changes in food safety and the global food safety and defense system and identify current and future food safety and defense challenges and opportunities.  Identify the potential barriers, gaps, and most critical needs for an integrated preventative approach to ensuring the safety of FDA regulated food of both domestic and foreign origin.
  • Develop and track an operations plan to direct and implement specific agency-wide food protection actions and initiatives (immediate and future).
  • Ensure the communication of agency-wide food protection policies and program decisions to organizational components.  
  • Serve as liaison to Department of Health and Human Services on food protection issues. Ensure that effective relationships are established and maintained for communication and exchange of information and progress toward Agency, Departmental, and Administration food protection and defense goals.
  • Conduct outreach with federal, state, local, and international agencies, academic and non-profit organizations, professional and trade associations, industry, and the public to communicate FDA food safety and defense vision and related actions and initiatives to create a climate for cooperative work relations, and support and understanding of the FDA’s food protection program objectives.

Health Promotion Activities

The Office of Food Protection is tasked with providing agency wide leadership in all areas of foods including health promotion and nutrition.  The goal of this initiative is to convey the positive health benefits of FDA regulated foods.  The Office is in the process of developing and coordinating health promotion activities in collaboration with other FDA centers, government agencies, and industry to promote the health benefits of food and raise the visibility of the FDA’s role in this area.

Office of Food Protection Staff


Dr. David Acheson
Associate Commissioner of Foods

Alissa Van Wie
Project Analyst

Kari Barret
Senior Advisor

Cassandra Pusey
Management Specialist

Related Resources

Congressional Testimony from Office of Food Protection

Acheson
Dr. David Acheson

Contact Information

Food and Drug Administration
Office of Food Protection
5600 Fishers Lane
Parklawn Building, HF-60
Rockville, MD 20857
Phone 301-827-4000
Fax 301-827-2866
Email: FoodProtection@fda.hhs.gov

 

rule link to FDA home page link to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services FDA logo--link to FDA home page