NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTS Arthur Whitmore: 202-205-4144
January 15, 1998
Consumer Inquiries: 800-532-4440
DR. ROBERT L. BUCHANAN APPOINTED AS A
SENIOR SCIENTIST FOR PRESIDENTIAL FOOD SAFETY INITIATIVE
The Food and Drug Administration today announced that Dr.
Robert (Bob) L. Buchanan will be joining the agency's Center for
Food Safety and Applied Nutrition as a senior scientist for the
President's National Food Safety Initiative and a member of the
U.S. Public Health Service's Senior Biomedical Research Service.
The Food Safety Initiative was announced in January 1997 by
President Clinton. It directs and provides funding for the Food
and Drug Administration and other government food-safety agencies
to take steps to reduce the number of U.S. foodborne illnesses.
As a senior FDA scientific authority for the initiative, Dr.
Buchanan will have oversight for development of science-based
policies implemented under the initiative. His appointment is
another step forward in assembling a senior team to tackle this
important issue. He will begin his duties on January 18.
Dr. Buchanan is a leading authority on food microbiology and
quantitative risk assessment for microbial foodborne pathogens.
He has conducted extensive research in food safety microbiology,
bacterial physiology and mycotoxicology.
Dr. Buchanan currently is a senior investigator with the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service
(ARS), stationed at the ARS Eastern Regional Research Center in
Philadelphia, Pa. He has served in various positions in USDA
including Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology for the
Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Prior to his USDA career, Dr. Buchanan served as an
associate professor at Drexel University. He is the recipient of
numerous professional awards including the University of
Wisconsin Fraiser Award, the Institute of Food Technologist's
Bauermann Award, and the ARS Outstanding Scientist of the Year
Award. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology and
a member of both the National Advisory Committee on
Microbiological Criteria for Foods and the International
Commission for Microbiological Specifications for Foods. He is
also a member of numerous professional organizations and serves
as a contributing editor for Food Microbiology and a member of
the board of editors for the Journal of Food Safety and the
Journal of Food Protection.
Dr. Buchanan received his Ph.D. in microbiology from Rutgers
University, and post-doctoral training at the University of
Georgia.
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