USDA SAS: CLMFS
The Center for Low Moisture Food Safety (CLMFS) is a USDA-funded Sustainable Agriculture Systems center led by Michigan State University and its collaborating institutions.
CLMFS’s goals are to:
(1) Accelerate the adoption of a sustainable food safety culture in commodity-based low-moisture food systems via an integrated, transdisciplinary, systems-based approach, with interconnected and parallel research, extension, and education activities.
(2) Reduce foodborne illnesses and product recalls linked to low-moisture foods to improve the protection of public health and the economic health of large and small entities within the industry.
CLMFS Evaluation Overview
The CLMFS Evaluation plan uses an improvement-oriented evaluation strategy to provide both formative and summative evaluation feedback across the center’s research, extension, and education efforts.
Evaluation includes bibliometric analysis of publications looking at citation-based metrics of impact, as well as co-authorship analysis investigating various forms of collaboration and team science.
Evaluation includes surveys with stakeholders and program records review documenting patterns of collaboration, knowledge transfer, and impact on their knowledge, attitudes, and intentions to adopt low moisture food safety best practices.
Evaluation includes student surveys investigating training opportunities, impacts on relevant student knowledge, skills, and abilities, career preparation, and career outcomes for project alumni.