[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46963-46965]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-18631]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2013-N-0010]


Cooperative Agreement to Support the Food and Agriculture 
Organization

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing its 
intention to receive and consider a single source application for award 
of a cooperative agreement in fiscal year 2013 to the Food and 
Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations to support global 
strategies that address food safety and public health.
    The goal of this collaborative project between FDA and FAO is to 
contribute to the knowledge base and development of food safety systems 
globally due to the increasingly diverse and complex food supply. The 
project is also designed to enhance and broaden FDA's ability to 
address global food safety and public health issues associated with 
food as well as provide opportunities to leverage additional resources 
of other countries. The collaborative project will also support the 
FDA's implementation of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), 
including FDA's International Food Safety Capacity Building Plan, which 
emphasizes the concept of preventing food safety-related problems 
before they occur and the importance of establishing strong 
relationships and mutual support among all stakeholders, including 
multilateral organizations, to improve worldwide food safety. In 
addition, the collaborative project will support food safety, 
nutrition, and public health programs that align with FDA's mission.

DATES: Important dates are as follows:
    1. The application due date is September 1, 2013.
    2. The anticipated start date is September 2013.
    3. The expiration date is September 2, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Submit electronic applications to: http://www.grants.gov. 
For more information, see section III of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Scientific/Programmatic Contact: Julie 
Moss, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (HFS-550), Food and 
Drug Administration, 5100 Paint Branch Pkwy., College Park, MD 20740, 
240-402-2031, [email protected]. Grants Management Contact: Gladys

[[Page 46964]]

Melendez, Office of Acquisitions and Grant Services (HFA 500), Food and 
Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 2032, Rockville, MD 20857, 
301-827-7175, [email protected].
    For more information on this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) 
and to obtain detailed requirements, please refer to the full FOA 
located at www.fda.gov/food/newsevents/default.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    93.103 RFA-FD-13-037

A. Background

    An intergovernmental organization, FAO has 191 Member Nations, two 
associate members, and one member organization (the European Union). 
Achieving food security for all is at the heart of FAO's efforts--to 
make sure people have regular access to enough high-quality food to 
lead active, healthy lives. FAO's mandate is to raise levels of 
nutrition, improve agricultural productivity, better the lives of rural 
populations, and contribute to the growth of the world economy. FAO's 
activities comprise four main areas:
    Putting information within reach: FAO serves as a knowledge 
network. The organization uses the expertise of its staff--agronomists, 
foresters, fisheries and livestock specialists, nutritionists, social 
scientists, economists, statisticians and other professionals--to 
collect, analyze, and disseminate data that aid development.
    Sharing policy expertise: FAO lends its years of experience to 
member countries in devising agricultural policy, supporting planning, 
drafting effective legislation, and creating national strategies to 
achieve rural development and hunger alleviation goals.
    Providing a meeting place for nations: As a neutral forum, experts 
from around the globe convene at headquarters or in field offices to 
forge agreements on major food and agriculture issues.
    Bringing knowledge to the field: FAO provides the technical know-
how and mobilizes and manages millions of dollars provided by 
industrialized countries, development banks, and other sources to make 
sure the projects achieve their goals.
    Capacity Development is a core function highlighted in FAO's new 
strategic framework. Member Countries place strong emphasis on FAO 
enhancing delivery in this area as they recently approved the Corporate 
Strategy on Capacity Development. The Strategy was developed in 
consultation with Member Countries and all FAO units worldwide. Taking 
a corporate approach to Capacity Development allows FAO to learn from 
its collective efforts and to support Member Countries in their own 
Capacity Development activities. The new FAO Capacity Development 
framework will guide FAO staff and their partners in analyzing 
capacities in Member Countries and identifying the appropriate 
intervention(s) for fostering sustainable development.
    FAO supports Member Countries in developing their capacities to 
effectively manage food safety and quality as a key step to 
safeguarding the health and well-being of people as well as to 
accessing domestic, regional, and international markets. Capacity 
Development in Food Safety and Quality is the process through which 
relevant stakeholders from farm to table (including government 
agencies, food enterprises, academia, and consumers) are able to better 
perform their functions and to assume their responsibilities in 
ensuring safety and quality of food for domestic consumption and 
export.
    For the Food Safety and Quality Unit (AGN) within FAO, its overall 
goal is to improve systems of food safety and quality management, based 
on scientific principles, that lead to reduced foodborne illness and 
support fair and transparent trade, thereby contributing to economic 
development, improved livelihoods, and food security. This unit:
    1. Provides independent scientific advice on food safety and 
nutrition, which serves as the basis for international food standards.
    2. Develops institutional and individual capacities for food 
control and food safety management in many countries, including the 
management of food safety emergencies.
    3. Supports processes for the development of food safety policy 
frameworks.
    4. Facilitates global access to information and encourages and 
supports the development of food safety/quality networks.
    While the specific projects to be undertaken under this agreement 
will be determined following the agreement entering into force, 
examples of the types of food safety projects of interest to FDA that 
could be undertaken by the FAO include the following: Development of 
policy support tools to guide planning and investment in national food 
control systems; provision of technical advice for the development and 
improvement of integrated and modern food control systems; enhancement 
of effective participation in the work of the Codex Alimentarius 
Commission and other international fora; addressing emerging food 
safety issues; and development of technical tools and guides related to 
various technical and managerial aspects of food control. In addition 
to the aforementioned types of projects, FDA would also be interested 
in supporting nutrition projects through this Agreement. Examples of 
such projects include the FAO's Nutrition Education and Communication 
project focusing on professional education, as well as assistance with 
countries seeking to develop effective food-based dietary guidelines.
    AGN also houses the secretariat of the Joint FAO/World Health 
Organization Codex Alimentarius Secretariat.

B. Research Objectives

    With an increasingly diverse and complex global food supply, FDA's 
interest is to strengthen food safety systems globally to prevent food 
safety problems rather than merely reacting to problems after they 
occur. FDA recognizes that it can't do this alone. By working with 
other World Trade Organization member countries and partnering with the 
FAO, FDA can broaden the reach of food safety capacity building 
efforts.
    This Cooperative Agreement will allow FDA to deepen its 
international food safety capacity building partnerships, provide a 
wider scope of impact than exists currently, and merge resources with 
other countries.
    This cooperative agreement will provide support so that the FAO can 
meet the following projected milestones:
    1. Contribute to the knowledge base and development of food safety 
systems due to the increasingly diverse and complex food supply.
    2. Enhance and broaden FDA's ability to address global food safety 
and public health issues associated with food.
    3. Provide opportunities to leverage additional resources of other 
countries.
    4. Support FSMA and its International Food Safety Capacity Building 
Plan, which emphasizes the concept of preventing food safety-related 
problems before they occur and the importance of establishing strong 
relationships and mutual support among all stakeholders, including 
multilateral organizations, to improve worldwide food safety.
    5. Support food safety, nutrition, and public health programs that 
align with FDA's mission.

C. Eligibility Information

    Competition is limited to the FAO because, as a global organization 
with a

[[Page 46965]]

well-established, trusted presence, access to 191 Member Nations, and 
an ability to coordinate capacity building programs at a regional and 
international level, it is uniquely qualified to further the global 
food safety capacity building objectives of this cooperative agreement. 
This ability to advance the objectives of this cooperative agreement 
through Member Country engagement and leveraging is a requisite for 
success.

II. Award Information/Funds Available

A. Award Amount

    The Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition intends to fund 
one award up to $750,000 total costs (direct plus indirect costs) for 
FY 2013. Future year amounts will depend on annual appropriations and 
successful performance.

B. Length of Support

    The award will provide 1 year of support and include future 
recommended support for 4 additional years, contingent upon 
satisfactory performance in the achievement of project and program 
reporting objectives during the preceding year and the availability of 
Federal fiscal year appropriations.

III. Electronic Application, Registration, and Submission

    Only electronic applications will be accepted. To submit an 
electronic application in response to this FOA, applicants should first 
review the full announcement located at www.fda.gov/food/newsevents/default.htm. (FDA has verified the Web site addresses throughout this 
document, but FDA is not responsible for any subsequent changes to the 
Web sites after this document publishes in the Federal Register.) For 
all electronically submitted applications, the following steps are 
required.
     Step 1: Obtain a Dun and Bradstreet (DUNS) Number
     Step 2: Register With System for Award Management (SAM)
     Step 3: Obtain Username & Password
     Step 4: Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) 
Authorization
     Step 5: Track AOR Status
     Step 6: Register With Electronic Research Administration 
(eRA) Commons
    Steps 1 through 5, in detail, can be found at http://www07.grants.gov/applicants/organization_registration.jsp. Step 6, in 
detail, can be found at https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/registration/registrationInstructions.jsp. After you have followed 
these steps, submit electronic applications to: http://www.grants.gov.

    Dated: July 29, 2013.
Leslie Kux,
Assistant Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2013-18631 Filed 8-1-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-01-P