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The FREE-B is an opportunity to test emergency operations, plans, protocols or procedures
addressing food emergencies, whether they're intentional or unintentional events. The project
is about trying to ultimately improve communication and collaboration amongst all the stakeholders
involved in food borne emergencies or food borne incidents. Whether it's an intentional
attack to the food supply, or it's inherent contamination, I think we recognize that the
impacts economically, and the impacts from a public health standpoint, can be dramatic
and devastating. The FDA, working with the Institute of Food Technologists, state and
local Regulatory and Public Health Agencies, the federal Regulatory and Public Health Agencies,
as well as industry, ummm and uhh the risk communicators, designed five different emergency
response scenarios. They're called table-top exercises. They did an excellent job, because
we had we had a manual on our table, we had a copy of the slides, we had questions. And
they just immediately jumped into putting the the onus on us, to to think this through,
and What would we do? and What what experience do we have in sharing that? So, no time was
wasted. It was very uhh very efficient way way to do this. I was trying to learn what
is the industry perspective when these sorts of incidents happen, what's the government
perspective. And then, as communicators, how can we better explain what all of this means
to the people who are ultimately getting the food. It's bringing together people and
also bringing them together so they know what is the capacity of your local state. The request
for use of the tool has been its been paramount. They want the tool. They want to be able to
practice. I've had requests in emails and verbal conversations and phone calls, ... we
want it, we want to host an exercise. I think people are going to realize what an invaluable
tool we have here. I think they're going to determine that it's very realistic. And
I also think they're going to determine that it's well worth their time, participating
in this program.