JIFSAN-CFS3

𝑴𝑷𝑬𝑫𝑨 𝑺𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒔 𝑴𝒐𝑼 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑼𝒏𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒚𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑱𝑰𝑭𝑺𝑨𝑵 𝒕𝒐 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑺𝒆𝒂𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝑾𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝑺𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Maryland and the Joint Institute for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN) on a Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) project, announced the Chairman of MPEDA, 𝗦𝗵𝗿𝗶 𝗝𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗿 𝗣., 𝗜𝗔𝗦. The MoU signing was attended by Dr Ram Mohan, Director; Dr T.R. Gibin Kumar, Secretary; Dr Abhilash E.C., Assistant Director and Principal Investigator of the project; and Mrs Vineetha K.V., Technical Officer and Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) from MPEDA. The functionaries who joined virtually included Dr Steve Bloodgood (US FDA), Dr Jessica Jones (US FDA), Connie Richard-Math (FDA, INO), Dr Pankaja Panda (FDA, INO), Anthony Rizkalla (FDA, INO), Dr Padmini Ramachandran (US FDA), and Fazila Shakir (US FDA), JIFSAN Human Foods Program. The initiative seeks to strengthen seafood safety and quality assurance between India and the United States by enhancing laboratory capabilities for the rapid detection, identification, and genomic tracking of foodborne pathogens. Through this collaboration, MPEDA will gain access to advanced scientific expertise, technical training, and knowledge exchange, facilitating the adoption of globally accepted genomic surveillance practices and strengthening its food safety monitoring systems. The U.S. side will benefit from enhanced traceability, improved regulatory compliance, and a deeper understanding of seafood-borne pathogen risks, thereby supporting more effective prevention, preparedness, and response to potential foodborne disease outbreaks. #MPEDA #SeafoodSafety #WholeGenomeSequencing #WGS #FoodSafety #GenomicSurveillance #Traceability #JIFSAN #USFDA #IndiaUSPartnership #seafood #export #indianseafood @DoC_GoI @FisheriesGoI @Min_FAHD @MOFPI_GOI