Apply for the 2023 Samuel J. Crumbine Consumer Protection Award for Excellence in Food Protection

Applications are open for the 2023 Samuel J. Crumbine Consumer Protection Award for Excellence in Food Protection. The Crumbine Award is given annually to local environmental health jurisdictions that demonstrate unsurpassed achievement in providing outstanding food protection services to their communities. The award highlights innovative programs and methods that reduce or eliminate the occurrence of foodborne illnesses, recognize the importance of food protection at the local level, and stimulate public interest in food service sanitation.  

The deadline to submit entries for the 2023 award is March 15. To apply, please visit crumbineaward.com. 

The basic criteria of an award-winning program are: 

  • Sustained excellence over the preceding four to six years, as documented by specific outcomes and achievements, and evidenced by continual improvements in the basic components of a comprehensive program; 
  • Demonstrated improvements in planning, managing, and evaluating a comprehensive program; 
  • Innovative and effective use of program methods and problem-solving to identify and reduce risk factors that are known to cause foodborne illness; and 
  • Targeted outreach; developed partnerships; and participation in forums that foster communication and information exchange among regulators, industry, and consumer representatives. 

Local government organizations with responsibility for food protection in the United States and Canada are eligible to apply. These departments or agencies have the legal responsibility to protect consumers’ health in a county, district, city, town, township, or like jurisdiction. In addition, the U.S. Uniformed Services and the U.S. Indian Health Service area programs may apply if they conduct a local food program. Past award winners may apply five years after their previous award. State, provincial, institutional, industry, and private programs are not eligible. 

The Crumbine Award is supported by the Conference for Food Protection in cooperation with the American Academy of Sanitarians, American Public Health Association, Association of Food & Drug Officials, Food Marketing Institute, Foodservice Packaging Institute, International Association for Food Protection, National Environmental Health Association, National Restaurant Association, NSF International, UL, and NACCHO.  

The Crumbine Award was named for one of America’s most renowned health officers and health educators, Samuel J. Crumbine, MD (1862–1954) and was first awarded in 2001.