A new consumer-oriented food-safety education program has been established at UC Davis to provide research-based information regarding the relative risks and safety aspects of food production, processing, retailing and handling. "The goal of the FoodSafe program is to bring perspective to the public food-safety debate regarding chemical residues and microbial contaminants in food," says Carl Winter, a Cooperative Extension toxicologist who is director of the new program sponsored by the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. "We'll provide timely,scientific information to the public, news media, regulatory agencies, educators, food producers and processors, and health professionals throughout California and nationwide." Although public concern is most often focused on chemical residues, many researchers believe microbial contamination of food is the leading food safety issue, Winter says. While significant attention will continue to be given to residue information, the FoodSafe program will emphasize quality assurance by working with food service institutions, health professionals and consumers to decrease the incidence of illness caused annually by salmonella and other food microbes.