This study aimed at analyzing local government's employment of food safety experts in Japan, including their deployment, education, and training while in employment. We conducted interviews with the individuals in charge of food safety in a number of local government administrations. On the basis of those interviews, we designed a questionnaire for local governments and sent it to 47 prefectures, 19 designated cities, 41 core cities, and 8 municipalities that have public health centers. We received responses from 32 prefectures (a collection rate of 68.0%), 16 designated cities (84.2%), 37 core cities (90.2%), and 6 municipalities (75.0%). The findings were as follows: 1. Veterinarians and pharmacists accounted for many positions in food-safety-and-hygiene sections; 2. There was great demand for food safety experts, especially veterinarians, in many local governments; 3. Experts had fewer opportunities for education and training during employment because they were too busy, and senior staff members also were too busy to teach and guide their juniors; and 4. Off-the-job training for experts was dependent on the scale and financial standing of each local government - small governments could not afford to conduct training programs for experts independently.
