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Food Safety Summit Attracts
Top Industry Experts

On April 29, the 11th annual Food Safety Summit wrapped up its annual three-day meeting where nearly 1,600 food manufacturing, retail, foodservice, academic, military and government professionals attended and shared their knowledge and experiences at the Washington D.C. Convention Center. The Summit featured interactive workshops, general sessions, keynote presentations, networking events, exhibits by 175 companies, a poster abstract area and vendor theaters.

Three keynote speakers provided detailed information on issues facing the food industry, including Michael Kaufman, chairman of the board of the National Restaurant Association, who discussed how the industry and government are working together to improve safety and quality in the restaurant industry; Dr. David Theno, recently retired as Senior Vice President, Quality and Logistics of Jack-in-the-Box, who talked about the importance of being a strong leader in the face of food safety issues; and Dr. Donald Zink, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, who discussed the challenge of using outbreak investigations to drive continuous improvement in food safety.

The Summit also included a session entitled, “Third Party Auditing and Certification: Industry Perspectives,” which was attended by more than 300 people. The nine-expert panel discussed consumer confidence in government and industry; what consumers should do and how communications should flow in a food safety incident; how a government food safety agency can improve consumer confidence; and whether the entire farm-to-fork food chain should be held to the same minimum, transparent standard.

“Initial feedback has been very positive and we are extremely pleased with the success of the event,” said Scott Wolters, director of tradeshows and conferences for BNP Media, producers of the event.

The 2010 Food Safety Summit will be held April 12-14, 2010 at the Washington D.C. Convention Center. For more information, call 847/405-4000 or visit www.foodsafetysummit.com.

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FDA Proposed Budget Invests Substantially in Food Safety Initiatives

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is requesting a budget of $3.2 billion to protect and promote the public health as part of the President’s fiscal year 2010 budget – a 19 percent increase over the current FDA fiscal year budget. The request, which covers the period of Oct. 1, 2009, through Sept. 30, 2010, includes increases of $295.2 million in budget authority and $215.4 million in industry user fees.

Included in the proposed budget is a major initiative for Protecting America’s Food Supply.  The goal of the $259.3 million initiative is to protect American consumers by preventing intentional and unintentional contamination. This effort invests in priorities that strengthen the safety and security of the food supply chain for risk-based prevention with verification. Under this principle, the FDA holds all segments of industry accountable for ensuring that their products meet U.S. safety standards. The Protecting America’s Food Supply initiative focuses on foreign and domestic sources of ingredients, components and finished products at all points in the supply chain, including their eventual use by the American public. Within the initiative, the FDA proposes to collect a total of $94.4 million in new user fees to register food facilities and increase food inspections, issue food and feed export certifications, and reinspect food facilities that fail to meet the FDA’s safety standards.

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Pest Management Industry Reaps Awards

Copesan and Orkin Inc. received Read-ers’ Choice Awards, while Western Fumigation’s  Director of Imported Com-modities, Barbara Hunter, was the first woman to be awarded Philadelphia’s Spirit of the Port.

In Food Processing Magazine’s “2009 Readers’ Choice” awards for pest man-agement, Copesan was named a “Food Industry Best Supplier” for the second year in a row. The publication’s annual survey was sent to a select group of read-ers from across the industry. “Earning this honor speaks well of the hard work and dedication our service and support teams deliver to each and every one of our clients,” said Deni Naumann, Copesan president. “Copesan prides itself on listening to the needs of the food processing industry. Our thanks go out to every person in the Copesan organization that has helped us earn this prestigious award and to our clients for recognizing the value we provide them.”

Also named to the Reader’s Choice list, Orkin was recognized as a top industry supplier. “Effective pest management is critical to food safety, so this award means a lot to us,” said Dr. Zia Siddiqi, director of quality systems. “Orkin strives to be the nation’s best service company by deliver-ing the finest quality services and value to our customers. This award tells us we’re accomplishing our mission.”

Hunter was chosen for the Spirit of the Port award for her many accomplishments, awards and recognition since coming to the ports 30 years ago; her leadership and interface with Chile; and her dedication to the growth and success of the Delaware River Ports. Hunter has been with Western since 1975 and has worked with the Delaware River Ports since 1979. 

 
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Eric VanHouten Joins Copesan as Vice President of Operations

Eric VanHouten has joined Menomonee Falls, Wis.-based Copesan as vice president of operations. With more than 20 years in accounting, strategic planning, business unit development and project management, Van Houten was most recently with Waste Management. He holds an MBA from Central Michigan University with a finance concentration.

Sebelius Sworn In as HHS Secretary

Called the right person at the right time for the job by President Barack Obama, Kathleen Sebelius took the oath to become the new U.S.  Health and Human Services Secretary April 29. Just hours earlier, the Senate voted 65-31 to confirm her appointment, at which time Sebelius resigned as Kansas governor and headed to Washington to be sworn in. The administration wanted to swear in Sebelius right away because the nation is facing “a significant public health challenge that requires her immediate attention,” President Obama said.

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U.S. Organic Sales Grow 17.1 Percent in 2008

U.S. sales of organic products, both food and non-food, reached $24.6 billion by the end of 2008, growing 17.1 percent over 2007 sales despite tough economic times, according to the Organic Trade Association (OTA) 2009 Organic Industry Survey.

While the overall economy has been losing ground, sales of organic products reflect very strong growth during 2008. “Organic products represent value to consumers, who have shown continued resilience in seeking out these products,” said Christine Bushway, OTA’s Executive Director.

The survey, conducted by Lieberman Research Group on behalf of OTA, measured the growth of U.S. sales of organic foods and beverages as well as non-food categories. Results show organic food sales grew in 2008 by 15.8 percent to reach $22.9 billion, accounting for approximately 3.5 percent of all U.S. food product sales.

With tough economic times, consumers have used various strategies in continuing to buy organic products, including increased use of coupons and purchase of private label brands and value-positioned products offered by major organic brands.

Complete survey results are available for purchase at the OTA website, www.ota.com.