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Washington, DC — The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is requesting $318.3 million for food safety reform in fiscal year 2011.

If approved, the FDA says it will look to upgrade import safety programs, improve data collection and risk analysis and establish an integrated national food safety system with strengthened inspection and response capacity.

The total $4.03 billion funding request for FY 2011 represents a 23 percent hike compared with the agency’s current budget of $3.28 billion.