Increasing the Capability and Capacity of Microbiological and Chemical Testing to Support an Integrated Food Defense and Food Safety System Chemistry Discipline, Human Food Product Testing Analytical Track Project Summary / Abstract The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) Consumer Protection Laboratory (CPL) proposes to participate in risk assessment of human food products through surveillance testing and collaboration with state and federal regulators. The Food Safety division of ODA is the primary state regulatory sampling organization and throughout the past four to five years ODA-CPL and the Food Safety division has created and renewed a sampling agreement as part of their cooperative efforts in enrollment of the Manufactured Food Regulatory Program Standards (MFRPS). ODA-CPL thus requests for at least 75 human food samples from Food Safety to support the surveillance work relating to this analytical track. This will be supplemented by ODA-CPL’s acquisition of another 425 human food samples for surveillance testing. The laboratory is prepared to perform GC-MS, LC-MS and ICP-MS screens for toxins, poisons, toxic metals and any other type of contaminant that might be present in food samples. The current focus is screening for lead in syrups and screening for patulin and arsenic in apple ciders. Through ODA-CPL’s involvement in the Chemistry Discipline Capability and Capacity Development Analytical Track, the lab is poised to integrate a multiplex system into their current workflow to assist allergens testing through the xMAP Food Allergen Detection Assay. When ODA-CPL successfully develops, implements and authorizes the use of this method, ODA- CPL proposes to supplement surveillance testing by re-allocating resources towards the screening of spices for allergens.