EXECUTIVE
ORDER		 EO 13100
Effective Date: August 25, 1998
Responsible Office: Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications
Subject: President's Council on Food Safety
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United 
States of America, and in order to improve the safety of the food supply through science-
based regulations and well-coordinated inspection, enforcement, research, and education 
programs, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1.  Establishment of President's Council on Food Safety.  (a) There is established 
the President's Council on Food Safety ("Council").  The Council shall comprise the 
Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, the Director of the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Administrator of this Environmental 
Protection Agency, the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology/Director of 
the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Assistant to the President for Domestic 
Policy, and the Director of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government.  The 
Council shall consult with other Federal agencies and State, local, and tribal government 
agencies, and consumer, producer, scientific, and industry groups, as appropriate.
        (b) The Secretaries of Agriculture and of Health and Human Services and the 
Assistant to the President for Science and Technology/Director of the Office of Science 
and Technology Policy shall serve as Joint Chairs of the Council.

Sec. 2.  Purpose.  The purpose of the Council shall be to develop a comprehensive 
strategic plan for Federal food safety activities, taking into consideration the findings and 
recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences report "Ensuring Safe Food from 
Production to Consumption" and other input from the public on how to improve the 
effectiveness of the current food safety system.  The Council shall make recommendations 
to the President on how to advance Federal efforts to implement a comprehensive science-based strategy to improve the safety of the food supply and to enhance coordination among Federal agencies, State, local, and tribal governments, and the private sector.  The Council shall advise Federal agencies in setting priority areas for investment in food safety.

Sec. 3.  Specific Activities and Functions.  (a) The Council shall develop a comprehensive 
strategic Federal food safety plan that contains specific recommendations on needed 
changes, including measurable outcome goals.  The principal goal of the plan should be 
the establishment of a seamless, science-based food safety system.  The plan should 
address the steps necessary to achieve this goal, including the key public health, resource, 
and management issues regarding food safety.  The planning process should consider both short-term and long-term issues including new and emerging threats and the special needs of vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly.  In developing this plan, the Council shall consult with all interested parties, including State and local agencies, tribes, consumers, producers, industry, and academia.
        (b) Consistent with the comprehensive strategic Federal food safety plan described in 
section 3(a) of this order, the Council shall advise agencies of priority areas for investment 
in food safety and ensure that Federal agencies annually develop coordinated food safety 
budgets for submission to the OMB t hat sustain and strengthen existing capacities, 
eliminate duplication, and ensure the most effective use of resources for improving food 
safety.  The Council shall also ensure that Federal agencies annually develop a unified 
budget for submission to the OMB for the President's Food Safety Initiative and such 
other food safety issues as the Council determines appropriate.
        (c) The Council shall ensure that the Joint Institute for Food Safety Research (JIFSR), 
in consultation with the National Science and Technology Council, establishes mechanisms to guide Federal research efforts toward the highest priority food safety needs.  The JIFSR shall report to the Council on a regular basis on its efforts: (i) to develop a strategic plan for conducting food safety research activities consistent with the President's Food Safety Initiative and such other food safety activities as the JIFSR determines appropriate; and (ii) to coordinate efficiently, within the executive branch and with the private sector and academia, all Federal food safety research.

Sec. 4. Cooperation.  All actions taken by the Council shall, as appropriate, promote 
partnerships and cooperation with States, tribes, and other public and private sector 
efforts wherever possible to improve the safety of-the food supply.

Sec. 5. General Provisions.  This order is intended only to improve the internal 
management of the executive branch and is not intended to, nor does it, create any right or 
benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party against the United States, 
its agencies, it officers or any person.  Nothing in this order shall affect or alter the 
statutory responsibilities of any Federal agency charged with food safety responsibilities.

                                                                        /s/William J. Clinton


THE WHITE HOUSE, 
August 25, 1998. 



	
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