JIFSAN was established between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the University of Maryland (UM) in April 1996. The Institute is a jointly administered, multidisciplinary research and education program and includes research components from the FDA Centers for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) and Veterinary Medicine (CVM), and UM. The Institute will foster the missions of FDA and the UM through the creation of partnerships to increase the quantity and quality of research, which will provide the basis for sound public health policy. It will promote food safety and human nutrition and animal health and production through an integrated academic and regulatory science program. This includes multidisciplinary research, outreach and educational programs, and policy studies.