The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced the appointment of 21 new members and nine returning members to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF). The purpose of the committee is to provide impartial scientific advice and recommendations to federal food safety agencies.

Members of the committee are chosen based on their expertise in microbiology, risk assessment, epidemiology, public health, food science and other relevant disciplines. One individual affiliated with a consumer group is included in the membership of the committee and five members are federal government employees representing the five federal agencies involved in NACMCF. The activities of NACMCF are carried out, in part, by subcommittees that are focused on specific areas being considered by the full committee.

NACMCF has made important contributions to a broad range of critical food safety issues. The committee’s reports provide current information and scientific advice to federal food safety agencies and serve as a foundation for regulations and programs aimed at reducing foodborne disease and enhancing public health. Federal food safety agencies involved with NACMCF are USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Marine Fisheries Service, and the U.S. Department of Defense’s Veterinary Services.

The newly appointed NACMCF members, who will serve a two-year term, are:

• Dr. Bledar Bisha of the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyoming
• Dr. Heather Carleton of CDC in Atlanta, Georgia
• Dr. Anna Carlson of Cargill Protein in Wichita, Kansas
• Dr. Hayriye Cetin-Karaca of Smithfield Foods in Springdale, Ohio
• Dr. Ben Chapman of North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina
• Dr. Vik Dutta of bioMérieux in Chicago, Illinois
• Dr. Larry Figgs of the Douglas County Health Department in Omaha, Nebraska
• Dr. David Goldman of Groundswell Strategy in Arlington, Virginia
• Dr. Michael Hansen of Consumer Reports in Yonkers, New York
• Dr. Arie Havelaar of the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
• Dr. Ramin Khaksar of Clear Labs in San Carlos, California
• Lieutenant Colonel Noel Kuba of the Department of Defense, U.S. Army Veterinary Corps in Fort Knox, Kentucky
• Dr. KatieRose McCullough of the North American Meat Institute in Washington, D.C.
• Dr. Indaue Giriboni de Mello of Newman’s Own in Westport, Connecticut
• Dr. Eric Moorman of Butterball LLC in Garner, North Carolina
• Dr. Abani Pradhan of the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland
• Mr. Shivrajsinh Rana of Reckitt in Parsippany, New Jersey
• Dr. Marcos Sanchez Plata of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas
• Dr. Kristin Schill of the University of Wisconsin—Madison in Madison, Wisconsin
• Dr. Nikki Shariat of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia
• Dr. Abigail Snyder of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

The returning NACMCF members are:

• Dr. Yaohua (Betty) Feng of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana
• Ms. Janell Kause of USDA-FSIS in Washington, D.C.
• Dr. Elisabetta Lambertini of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition in Washington, D.C.
• Ms. Shannara Lynn of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Seafood Inspection Laboratory in Pascagoula, Mississippi
• Dr. Maxim Teplitski of the International Fresh Produce Association in Washington, D.C.
• Dr. Bing Wang of the University of Nebraska—Lincoln in Lincoln, Nebraska
• Dr. Benjamin Warren of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) in College Park, Maryland
• Dr. Randy Worobo of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York
• Dr. Teshome Yehualaeshet of Tuskegee University in Tuskegee, Alabama.

NACMCF will hold a virtual public meeting of the full committee and subcommittees from November 14–16, 2023. In addition to welcoming the new members, the committee will introduce a new charge from FSIS on genomic characterization of pathogens and continue working on the response to the FDA’s charge on Cronobacter in powdered infant formula. More details about NACMCF charges are available on the FSIS website. Interested parties may also register to attend the NACMCF meeting on FSIS’ website.