Retail Food Safety Regulatory Association Collaborative Welcomes the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials to the Collaborative

The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) has joined the Retail Food Safety Regulatory Association Collaborative. As part of the Collaborative, ASTHO’s primary activities will include supporting the promotion and adoption of the most recent editions of the FDA Food Code and engaging state and territorial public health leadership around increasing enrollment in the Retail Program Standards.

ASTHO will be leveraging its Policy Academy, a program that assists public health leaders in identifying and implementing policies that support public health and familiarizes participants with the policy development process so they can better leverage it to improve public health outcomes, to support the adoption of the Food Code.

ASTHO’s membership is comprised of 59 chief health officials from each of the 50 states, Washington, D.C., five U.S. territories, and three Freely Associated States. ASTHO also supports peer communities of state and territorial health leaders and senior executives in health departments who work with the over 100,000 public health professionals employed at state and territorial public health agencies.

ASTHO’s primary goals are to:

• Develop strong and effective public health leaders.
• Improve public health through capacity building, technical assistance, and thought leadership.
• Advocate for resources and policies that improve the public’s health and well-being.

Michael Fraser, PhD, ASTHO’s CEO said: “ASTHO is looking forward to growing our partnership with the Retail Food Safety Regulatory Association Collaborative. As a member of the Collaborative, ASTHO will help ensure that decisions affecting our nation’s health and well-being incorporate the insights of state and territorial public health leaders.”

The addition of ASTHO as a member of the Collaborative bolsters our ability to achieve our vision of working together and leveraging the strengths and resources of all of the member organizations to reduce the incidence of foodborne illness across the United States.