[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 201 (Friday, October 17, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Page 59795]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-26269]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration


Cooperative Agreement to Support the National Center for Food 
Safety and Technology; Notice of Intent to Supplement

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Food Safety 
and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), announces its intent to award on an 
urgent basis, a single-source, program expansion supplement to the 
current cooperative agreement with the Illinois Institute of Technology 
(IIT) for $1.1 million in fiscal year (FY) 2004. This cooperative 
agreement provides support for the National Center for Food Safety and 
Technology (NCFST), which is located on IIT's Moffett Campus in Summit-
Argo, IL. The additional funding will enable IIT to undertake two new 
food contaminant mitigation projects and to continue the build-out of 
the biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory that began last year.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
    Regarding the administrative and financial management aspects of 
this notice: Maura Stephanos, Division of Contracts and Grants 
Management (HFA-531), Food and Drug Administration, 5600 Fishers Lane, 
Rockville, MD 20857, 301-827-7183, e-mail: [email protected].
    Regarding the programmatic aspects: Karen Carson, Center for Food 
Safety and Applied Nutrition (HFS-300), Food and Drug Administration, 
5100 Paint Branch Pkwy., College Park, MD 20740, 301-436-1664, e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Restricted Eligibility

    Assistance will be provided to IIT for the following reasons:
    1. As part of FDA's food safety and security program, development 
of effective mitigation strategies requires a better understanding of 
food processing techniques that could be used to reduce the likelihood 
that contaminants persist in food following processing. This type of 
research requires expertise in food processing and packaging in 
addition to the availability of facilities and equipment appropriate to 
this type of research. The IIT/NCSFT has these resources. Additionally, 
IIT/NCSFT has available through this collaborative research program, 
the scientific and practical experience in a wide variety of food 
commodities and processing techniques that will feed into the 
development of mitigation strategies. This research will build on the 
ongoing food safety research program.
    2. Last fiscal year FDA provided funds to IIT to expand the 
existing BSL-3 pilot plant facility to include BSL-3 laboratories. This 
is the only BSL-3 food processing pilot plant to which FDA has ready 
access. Expansion of the BSL-3 pilot plant facility will provide 
critical support to the overall research and will provide the 
flexibility to have more than one ongoing research project at a time. 
The additional funds will assure full operation of the facility and 
implementation of security measures consistent with Federal, State, and 
local requirements. Supplemental funds will allow the work on the BSL-3 
pilot plant to be completed as quickly as possible.

II. Funding

    It is anticipated that $1.1 million will be made available to fund 
this urgent, single-source, program expansion supplement in FY 2004.

    Dated: October 9, 2003.
Jeffrey Shuren,
Assistant Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 03-26269 Filed 10-16-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-01-S