In an effort to limit acute gastroenteritis, or food poisoning, the second most prevalent household illness, Cornell professors from the department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences have joined a research team which aims to identify the origin and transmission of pathogens that cause food-related illnesses.

Earlier this month, the United States Department of Agriculture formally announced the formation of the Food Safety Research and Response Network, funded by a $5 million grant from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service. The research team is comprised of over 50 experts from 18 different campuses across the country.

This coincides with the USDA’s current exploration of the efficiency of larger grants to a series of institutions, as opposed to its traditionally smaller grants to single institutions. The USDA currently has bestowed 3 large-scale grants at this time.