The new data analysis tool that began as a way to inform national pandemic response is now being used to help states with vaccine distribution to essential workers in food and agriculture. The FDA has partnered with members of Operation Warp Speed, the CDC, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for this effort.
21 FORWARD was developed in a joint effort by the following FDA groups to identify pandemic-related risks to the food supply.
- Office of Food Policy and Response
- Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
- Office of Regulatory Affairs
- Center for Veterinary Medicine
In the post, Hahn and Yiannas explain, “Early on in the pandemic, workers in the food and agriculture sector were identified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency as being among essential critical infrastructure workers, meaning that their ability to do their job safely is critical to our society’s ability to function. The FDA, in partnership with CDC and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has been working to provide food facilities the information and resources they need to help protect their workers against COVID-19 infection.”
