Federal and state integration activities toadvance cooperation and regulatory standardsamong animal food safety regulatoryprograms

The Department of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration awarded the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture Research Foundation (NASDA Foundation) a cooperative agreement totaling $1.071 million on September 20, 2025, under the Food and Drug Administration Research program (CFDA 93.103).

The award funds federal and state integration activities to advance cooperation and regulatory standards among animal food safety regulatory programs. Deliverables include support for advancement and periodic revision of the Animal Feed Regulatory Program Standards (AFRPS) as part of continuous improvement; identification, development, delivery, and promotion of animal food safety training programs to support AFRPS implementation and Food Safety Modernization Act provisions; coordination of federal and state government efforts to build and expand a national integrated animal food safety system; and establishment and improvement of systems for sharing best practices, guidance documents, sampling plans, procedures, memoranda of understanding, and other tools to facilitate mutual reliance between federal and state animal food regulatory programs and public health agencies.

The NASDA Foundation works collaboratively with the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) to deliver these activities. Performance occurs in Arlington, Virginia, with a period of performance from September 20, 2025, through August 31, 2028. The cooperative agreement structure realizes administrative cost savings for the FDA, NASDA Foundation, and AAFCO by consolidating prior separate funding arrangements.

Abstract

Project title: federal and state integration activities to advance cooperation and regulatory standards among animal food safety regulatory programs project objectives: as outlined in the requirements for RFA-FD-25-022, the primary objectives for this proposed project are for the nasda foundation (NASDAF) and aafco to: 1) support the advancement of the afrps and future revisions of the afrps as part of a system of continuous improvement to ensure the standards are modernized and support the needs of animal food regulatory programs; 2) identify, develop, deliver, promote, and assist with attendance of animal food safety training programs to support implementation of afrps, as well as training and stakeholder support for provisions of fsma; 3) support the eqorts of federal and state government agencies to build and expand a national integrated animal food safety system; and 4) establish and improve existing systems for the sharing, promotion, and collaboration of best practices, guidance documents, sampling plans, procedures, memorandums of understanding, and other tools to facilitate and encourage mutual reliance between federal and state animal food regulatory programs and public health agencies. Expected outcomes: the work outlined in this proposal will continue to build upon past successes achieved by the collaboration between national associations and state and federal partners over the past ten years, resulting in continuous improvement of the national integrated animal food safety system and increased compliance with the afrps. Additionally, by working under a single cooperative agreement, administrative cost savings will be realized by FDA, NASDAF, and aafco.