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          Guidance for Industry and FDA: Letter to Industry, State and Local Food Regulators and Inspectors Regarding  Web-based ALERT TrainingSearch for FDA Guidance Documents INDUSTRY LETTER
	Guidance for Industry and FDA: Letter to Industry, State and Local Food Regulators and Inspectors Regarding  Web-based ALERT Training
					
		
		February 2007


	 

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		    Guidance Issuing Office
          Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition


*This guidance document represents the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) current thinking on this topic. It does not create or confer any rights for or on any person and does not operate to bind FDA or the public. You can use an alternative approach if the approach satisfies the requirements of the applicable statutes and regulations. If you want to discuss an alternative approach, please contact the Office of Food Defense, Communication and Emergency Response, Food Defense Oversight Team at (301) 436-2428.*

This letter informs stakeholders that the five Food and Cosmetic Security (Defense) Preventative Measures guidance documents that are posted on CFSAN's guidance document site have been developed into an FDA Food Defense Awareness Initiative called ALERT. This new ALERT initiative is intended to raise awareness of state and local government agencies and the food industry regarding food defense issues. ALERT identifies five key points that industry can use to decrease the risk of intentional contamination at their facility.

Dear Colleague:

In July 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Department of Health and Human Services, announced its new Food Defense Awareness Initiative **ALERT**. This new ALERT initiative is intended to raise the awareness of state and local government agencies and the food industry regarding food defense issues. ALERT identifies five key points that industry and businesses can use to decrease the risk of intentional food contamination at their facility.

In an effort to ensure that all stakeholders have access to the ALERT message, FDA has developed an **ALERT:** **Food Defense Awareness** web-based training module. The purpose of the ALERT web-based training module is to raise awareness of the issues related to food defense. This course can be used by FDA investigators, other federal, state and local regulatory agencies, and industry operators and managers. This training module will provide stakeholders with the information they need to begin thinking about ways to prevent intentional food contamination within their span of control and facilities.

Training Objectives:

Describe the five parts of the ALERT initiative
	List examples of preventive measures that can be taken to protect business and industry from intentional food contamination
	Identify several elements that can become part of a continuous improvement plan
	Increase awareness among personnel in the food industry and encourage them to adopt practices that help protect the food supplyUpon completion of the ALERT training module, you should have gained the information necessary for implementing a food defense plan in your facility.

**The Best Defense is to Be Prepared:**View the ALERT training module and obtain more information on ALERT or other food defense related issues at www.cfsan.fda.gov/fooddefense.

If you have any questions regarding this correspondence or the content of the ALERT web-based training module, please contact Ms. Marion Allen, Office of Food Defense, Communication and Emergency Response via email at Marion.Allen@fda.hhs.gov or at (301) 436-1584.

Sincerely,

Dr. David Acheson, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer and Director,
Office of Food Defense, Communication and Emergency Response
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition

(1) This guidance has been prepared by the Office of Food Defense, Communication and Emergency Response, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Related Information

Food Defense Guidance Documents & Regulatory InformationSubmit Comments
	   		  			  			Submit comments on this guidance document electronically via docket ID: FDA-2013-S-0610 - Specific Electronic Submissions Intended For FDA's Dockets Management Staff (i.e., Citizen Petitions, Draft Proposed Guidance Documents, Variances, and other administrative record submissions)
						If unable to submit comments online, please mail written comments to:
						Dockets Management
							Food and Drug Administration
							5630 Fishers Lane, Rm 1061
							Rockville, MD 20852
						All comments should be identified with the title of the guidance.

                                                                                  Content current as of:
      09/20/2018
         
                  
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