Food Safety Consortium Symposium Set for Oct. 1-3
Sept. 20, 2006Contact Information:By Dave Edmark, Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station
479-575-5647 / dedmark@uark.edu
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Food Safety Consortium will convene its annual meeting Oct. 1-3 with a symposium focusing on emerging issues in food safety and new ways to fight foodborne bacteria. Research scientists and government and industry personnel from across the nation will speak at the sessions to be held at the Radisson Hotel in Fayetteville.
The FSC is a research alliance of food safety scientists at the University of Arkansas, Iowa State University and Kansas State University. Its work is funded by a special grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The annual meeting, which features progress reports on the FSC’s research projects by its three universities’ scientists, this year will also include presentations on food safety issues by scientists from other universities and the USDA Agricultural Research Service.
Activities will begin Oct. 1 with a poster session at the hotel from 3 to 6 p.m. The program of presentations will start at 8 a.m. Oct. 2. Dr. Milo J. Shult, UA vice president for agriculture, will deliver welcoming remarks and will introduce the keynote speaker, Arkansas Agriculture Secretary Richard Bell. Bell will speak on the importance of food safety in animal agriculture. Several scientific presentations on foodborne pathogens will follow throughout the day.
Discussion topics during the half-day session beginning at 8 a.m. Oct. 3 will cover emerging issues in food safety. The speakers and their topics will include:
* Christine Bruhn, a nationally prominent expert on consumer issues from the University of California-Davis, on food safety concerns for consumers;
* Joan Menke-Schaezer of the Wal-Mart Stores headquarters in Bentonville, on food safety issues in retail industry;
* Doug Powell of Kansas State University on best practices and new approaches in the public discussion of food safety information.
* Jenna Anding of Texas A&M University on the food safety education needs of retail food service establishments;
* Randall Phebus of Kansas State University on the FSC’s future in food defense issues, and
* Michael T. Roberts of the University of Arkansas School of Law on emerging food safety legal issues.
The conference also includes two bonus sessions on Oct. 3 following the completion of the main meeting at noon. The afternoon sessions, both at the Pauline Whitaker Animal Science Center on Highway 112, are:
* The Organic and Natural Food Workshop from 12:30 to 3 p.m., which will review organic food customers, food safety properties of organic foods and their unique properties.
* The Food Biosecurity Workshop from 1:30 to 4 p.m., which will review food defense and food security, threats and vulnerabilities, effective communications for food security and legal and regulatory issues.