Maintenance and Enhancement of ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation and Whole Genome Sequencing for State Food Testing Labs

Indiana State Department Of Health, Indianapolis IN

Investigators

Abstract

Indiana State Department of Health Maintenance and Enhancement of ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation PI: Ryan Gentry RFA-FD-19-018 Competition A Project Summary One of the primary goals of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), is the establishment of an integrated national food safety system created by the FDA in partnership with State and local authorities. The previous FDA Cooperative Agreement ISO/IEC 17025:2005 Accreditation for State Food Testing Laboratories provided the opportunity for states to lay the foundation for the integrated system. Indiana responded by becoming one of the first non-accredited labs to achieve accreditation during the funding period. Continued funding through this FOA is critical to Indiana?s sustained growth towards participation in an integrated national food safety system. Through this funding ISDH Laboratories will continue to improve our QMS, share these improvements with our peers, and maintain our ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. It is the goal of the ISDH Laboratories to use this funding opportunity to enhance our accreditation to cover analysis of additional FDA regulated items and move closer to mutual reliance to assist with laboratory surveillance for foodborne outbreaks with our FDA partners. These enhancements along with maintenance of the current Sample Collection and Analysis Project continue to provide a broad base of support for multiple programs and agencies within the State. Communication from these partners to their agency policymakers about the importance of having laboratory findings supported by ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation for regulatory actions drive continued support for accreditation at the State level.