Federal and University Partnership to Improve the Safety of Seafood from the Gulf of America | RFA FD 26 014

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA FD 26 014

The grant opportunity titled Federal and University Partnership to Improve the Safety of Seafood from the Gulf of America is a single-source cooperative agreement offered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It is designed to formalize and fund a close working partnership between FDA's Human Food Program, specifically the Office of Laboratory Operations and Applied Science (OLOAS) and the Office of Applied Microbiology and Technology (OAMT), and the Marine Environmental Sciences Consortium's Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL). The central idea is to combine FDA's strengths in food safety science, public health practice, and policy with DISL's strong academic programs, research capacity, and regional expertise in marine and coastal systems. By doing that, the agencies aim to strengthen the scientific base and practical tools needed to improve seafood safety, with an emphasis on seafood connected to the Gulf of America.

A key point of this announcement is that it is not an open competition. The eligibility is limited to one specific applicant: the Marine Environmental Sciences Consortium - Dauphin Island Sea Lab. That means FDA has identified DISL as the intended partner for this work, and the funding is structured accordingly. The opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding and uses a cooperative agreement as the funding instrument, which typically signals that FDA expects to be actively involved in the project rather than simply issuing a grant and stepping back. In other words, the project is expected to be collaborative, with substantial federal participation in planning, execution, and coordination of activities.

The purpose of the partnership is broadly framed around developing scientific collaborations, outreach, educational initiatives, and long-term intellectual partnerships between FDA and DISL. The announcement emphasizes that DISL offers a strong setting for multidisciplinary exchange because of its nationally ranked programs, advanced research collaborations, and innovative partnerships with business and industry. In practical terms, this kind of partnership can support work that connects laboratory science with real-world seafood safety needs, such as strengthening applied microbiology and environmental monitoring approaches, improving understanding of how marine conditions affect seafood contamination risks, supporting training and workforce development, and creating channels to share findings with stakeholders who influence seafood safety outcomes.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is listed under Funding Opportunity Number RFA FD 26 014 and is associated with CFDA Number 93.103. The activity category is identified as Affordable Care Act, Consumer Protection, Food and Nutrition, reflecting its placement within broader federal public health and consumer protection priorities. The application closing date is August 21, 2026. The award ceiling is $125,000, and the listing indicates one expected award, consistent with the single-eligible-applicant structure.

Overall, this opportunity is best understood as targeted federal support for a specific FDA-university partnership intended to improve the safety of seafood tied to the Gulf region by leveraging FDA's regulatory science and public health role alongside DISL's coastal and marine research environment. The funding is meant to anchor joint work that can produce useful science, strengthen outreach and education, and build a durable collaborative relationship focused on seafood safety challenges and solutions.

• The Food and Drug Administration in the affordable care act, consumer protection, food and nutrition sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Federal and University Partnership to Improve the Safety of Seafood from the Gulf of America" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.103.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2026-07-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2026-08-21. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $125,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for RFA FD 26 014

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