Industry icon Dane Bernard moderated a dynamic panel of industry experts who discussed issues ranging from the implementation of FSMA, legal implications including litigation and the role of the Department of Justice to the impact of produce, foreign supplier verification and intentional adulteration during the opening day keynote session of the 19th Annual Food Safety Summit.  

Following the keynote the Exhibit Hall opened showcasing 200 vendors offering new products and services. Over 1600 food safety professionals including processors, distributors, growers, retailers, foodservice operators, regulators and academicians are gathering this week at the 19th Annual Food Safety Summit Conference & Expo to see the newest products and services available to keep the nation's food supply safe and learn from industry leaders on the most important issues facing the industry. 

On Thursday, May 11th education sessions will take place from 8 am - 5:30 pm, the exhibit hall will be open from 10:30 am - 2:30 pm and the Closing Session on Case Studies from Recent Foodborne Illness Outbreaks will  close out the Summit from 4:15 - 5:30pm. The full schedule is available at www.foodsafetysummit.com.

• 6th Annual Town Hall (May 10th at 9:15 am) - FDA's Steve Ostroff; USDA's Alfred Almanza; CDC's Dr. Robert Tauxe, MPH, and AFDO's Joseph Corby will address pressing issues of today in regards to regulatory agencies and the private sector. The discussion will be proceeded by the presentation of the NSF Food Safety Leadership Awards.
• Education sessions during the day will focus on the FSMA Produce Rule, Home Delivery, Pathogens and Allergens, 2nd Party Audits, Supply Chain Management, Food Fraud, and Menu Labelling.
• Case Studies from Recent Foodborne Illness Outbreaks (May 11th from 4:15 - 5:130pm) will be the focus of the closing session with speakers including  Will Daniels, Shawn Stevens, Matthew Wise and William Marler.
• Subject matter experts presenting in the Solutions Stage Theaters both in the Exhibit Hall floor and in the Conference Center.  Companies participating include Magnifi Group, Sani Professional, Rentokil Steritech, Abbott, Spriax Sarco, ComplianceMetrix, CompWALK, Siemens, and Detectamet, Inc. 

The Food Safety Summit is a solution based conference and expo designed to meet the educational and information needs of the entire food industry including processors, distributors, growers, retailers, foodservice operators, regulators and academia. The Food Safety Summit is being held at the Donald Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. For more information, visit www.foodsafetysummit.com.

Source: Food Safety Summit