In 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched the Rapid Response Team (RRT) state partnership program to reduce the time it takes to investigate and stop foodborne illness outbreaks. Not long after, in 2011, the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) became law. After more than a decade, the 2008 RRT partnership program has proven so successful that FDA is using it as a model for expanding state partnerships to support implementation of FSMA through the Domestic Mutual Reliance program.

Domestic Mutual Reliance enables FDA and states with comparable public health systems to rely on, coordinate with, and leverage one another’s work, data, and actions to ensure food safety. These partnerships are key to the success of the New Era of Smarter Food Safety, an FDA initiative that represents a new approach to food safety, leveraging technology and other tools to create a more digital, more traceable, and safer food system.