“Response is in our DNA” was the theme for this year’s national Rapid Response Team (RRT) annual conference, held in Columbus, OH from Dec. 5-7, 2023. With 23 funded-RRT states (plus 3 volunteer states) coming together, there were nearly 200 registered attendees who networked and learned from each other. Under the RRT framework, federal and state partners attended together from the various jurisdictions, representing epidemiology, laboratory, investigators/field staff from food/feed/environmental health, recall and rapid response team coordinators, emergency response coordinators, state liaisons, the coordinated outbreak and response evaluation network (CORE), USDA, CDC, and more. Day one’s agenda topics ranged from interesting and reoccurring outbreak investigations and case studies to resources and tools for improved efficiency and prevention efforts in the field. The first day wrapped up with a networking reception and an “RRT’s Got Talent” show. Day two’s general session and afternoon breakouts covered case studies, local health partnerships, food protection task forces, and more. Day three provided updates from USDA and CDC along with an animal food hazards panel. Wrapping up the conference were two post-meeting events, including a tour of Ohio State University’s Controlled Environment Agriculture Research Complex Waterman Agriculture and Natural Resources Lab, and a “Practical Applications for Incident Management Workshop,” which featured demonstrations of practical tools and applications to use in incident response with an overview of FoodSHIELD applications that can assist. Learn more about the RRT here: https://www.fda.gov/federal-state-local-tribal-and-territorial-officials/integrated-food-safety-system-ifss-programs-and-initiatives/rapid-response-teams-rrts.
