FDA Teams

FDA's National Retail Food Team

The FDA's National Retail Food Team (NRFT) is responsible for formulating, coordinating, and implementing the FDA's strategic plan and policy on retail food safety. Comprised of representatives from the Office of State Cooperative Programs (OSCP), the Office of Partnerships (OP), the Office of Training Education and Development (OTED), and the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), the NRFT's overall goal is to reduce the occurrence of foodborne illness risk factors in retail food establishments.

Office of State Cooperative Programs (OSCP)

OSCP's aim is to build a more capable and uniform food safety system supported by a community of public health professionals and industry working cooperatively to ensure safe milk, shellfish, and retail food. We collaborate with our regulatory and industry partners to ensure they are equipped with the education, knowledge and tools needed to prevent foodborne illnesses in the milk, shellfish, and retail food industries.

The Retail Food Specialists are the field component of the NRFT. Their responsibilities include, but are not limited to, promoting the Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards, conducting Food Code standardization, and conducting training courses while establishing a cooperative relationship with our state, local, and tribal partners.

• The FDA Retail Food Specialists are located throughout the United States and are assigned to one of the three OSCP Branches. The Specialists work with their assigned state, local, tribal, and territorial regulatory agencies daily to provide technical assistance. 
• The Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards (Retail Program Standards) define what constitutes a highly effective and responsive program for the regulation of foodservice and retail food establishments.

CFSAN'’s Retail Food Protection Staff

CFSAN's Retail Food Protection Staff (RFPS) provide national leadership on retail food safety policy, regulations, and guidance to agencies and organizations involved in ensuring the safety of foods served to the consumer and the traveling public. The RFPS seeks to inform a more proactive, preventive, risk-informed approach to retail food safety policy.

The mission of the RFPS is to advance public health through the development of science-informed regulation, policy, and guidance for retail food safety and interstate conveyances. Key program activities include: Policy analysis, Research and Data Analytics, Policy Surveillance, Standardization, Technical Assistance, and Communications/Outreach.

• CFSAN's Education Resource Library provides a catalog of printable educational materials and videos on topics related to food safety, nutrition (including labeling and dietary supplements), and cosmetics.
• FDA Retail Food Protection
• Model Food Code

Office of Partnerships (OP)

OP coordinates with FDA's Office of International Programs, as well as FDA's Intergovernmental Affairs staff, and the various FDA centers in collaboration with federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and international regulatory and public health partners to ensure cohesive and uniform application of agency policy and to make partnership happen by fostering funding opportunities and promoting domestic and international mutual reliance and systems recognition.

OP serves as the ORA focal point for the coordination of cooperative relationships with federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and international regulatory public health agencies, and associations policy.

• Learn how OP is Working together to promote and protect Public Health. 
• Visit this website to learn more about OP contacts.
• For information regarding grant, cooperative agreement, and contract programs managed by FDA Office of Partnerships, please visit Funding opportunities.

Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)

OTED's mission is to provide high-quality learning opportunities through the delivery of timely and cost-effective learning products that support the mission and strategic goals of the FDA and that meet the training and development needs of ORA personnel, state and local regulatory officials, and other stakeholders.

• Visit the ORA LearnED system regularly for course schedules and updates.