Food Safety Matters

Sally Powell Price, PG.Dip., M.Sc. joined MilliporeSigma in 2020 as a Regulatory Subject Matter Expert for Public Health focusing on food safety, testing, and environmental monitoring in North America. Previously, she served as Food and Environmental Lab Supervisor at the New York City Department of Health Public Health Laboratory, and as Director of Lab Operations at a Boston-based startup. She h...

Miguel Ramirez is a seasoned food manufacturing executive with more than three decades of operational leadership experience in the food industry. He currently serves as Vice President of Operations at Fresca Foods Inc. in Louisville, Colorado, where he has held progressive leadership roles over the past 13 years including Plant Manager, Director of Operations, and his current VP role. Prior to Fre...

Elaine Borghi, Ph. D. is Unit Head for Monitoring and Surveillance, Nutrition, and Food Safety at the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Borghi contributes to the coordination of efforts for nutrition and food safety data management, the generation of regional and global-level estimates and data-sharing tools, and the facilitation of inter-department data and methods harmonization. She holds a P...

Alissa Welsher, Ph. D. is a Senior Consultant at Elanco Poultry Food Safety. Dr. Welsher received her bachelor's degree in biological sciences from the University of Pittsburgh, a master's degree in poultry science, and a Ph. D. in cell and molecular biology from the University of Arkansas. Her area of expertise is in meat and poultry food safety, and she specializes in integrated pest management...

Brady Carter, Ph. D. is the Chief Scientific Officer at Carter Scientific Solutions. He specializes in water activity, moisture sorption, shelf-life stability, plant science, and wheat production and quality. He has 23 years of experience in research and development and previously was a Research Professor at Washington State University focusing on wheat end-use quality. Dr. Carter has pioneered wo...

To get a taste of the discussions that were happening at the 2026 Food Safety Summit, we spoke face-to-face with Roberta Wagner, M.Sc. , Senior Vice President of Regulatory and Scientific Affairs for the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA); Steven Mandernach, J.D. , Executive Director of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) and Sandra Eskin, J.D. , CEO of STOP Foodborne Illne...

To get a taste of the discussions that were happening at the 2026 Food Safety Summit, we spoke face-to-face with Jeremy Zenlea, M.B.A. , Vice President and Head of Health and Safety for EG America and Laurie Farmer , Director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Office of Retail Food Protection; David Clifford, M.B.A. , Director of Food Safety at Nestlé USA and Sara Mortimore, M.Sc....

Larry Keener, CFS, PA is President and CEO of International Product Safety Consultants Inc. and an internationally regarded microbiologist and process authority in the food industry. His areas of expertise range from applied food microbiology to the development and application of novel preservation technologies. Mr. Keener is a 2013 Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a Board Cert...

Jenny Du, Ph. D. is Co-Founder of Apeel Sciences, a post-harvest intelligence and solutions company helping suppliers and retailers deliver fresh, healthier, and simply better produce at scale—using plant-based materials science to close the gap between what consumers expect from fresh produce and what the supply chain is able to deliver. Jenny earned her bachelor's degree in engineering chemistry...

Sandro Tarchini serves as Global Head of Business Development at Cardano Foundation. He has more than a decade of experience in digital financial services, fintech innovation, and strategic partnerships across blockchain and traditional finance sectors. Prior to joining the Foundation, he worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers, Saxo Bank, and most recently, Wyden. Sandro's latest work at the Foundation...

Suzette Stalker is Director of FSQA Program Compliance at FreshRealm Inc. Formerly, she served as Director of Food Safety, Quality, and Regulatory compliance at Target Corporation. At Target, Suzette was responsible for food safety standards and programs, covering nearly 2,000 stores and more than 60 supply chain facilities. Her work encompassed owned brand supplier manufacturing facilities, produ...

Chris McGarvey is the Director of the Regulatory and Compliance Team for Walker Morris LLP in the UK. He has more than 25 years of experience working in both the private and public sector, and has a track record of helping clients navigate complex legal challenges in areas of highly regulated economic activity. Chris specializes in food law and led the Food Standards Agency's (FSA's) Legal Team th...

Kye Luker  serves as the Chief Product Officer at FlexXray, where he leads development of the company's innovative X-ray inspection process and technology. With more than two decades of experience in the service, consumer packaged goods (CPG), and food and beverage industries, Kye brings a wealth of knowledge in continuous improvement, quality assurance, and formulations to his role. In this episo...

Richard (Rick) Stier, M.S.  is a consulting food scientist who has helped food processors develop safety, quality, and sanitation programs. He believes in emphasizing the importance of how these programs can help companies increase profits. Rick comes from a family background in food science, with the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) establishing an award in his mother's name—the Humanitarian...

Claire Sand, Ph. D. is a global packaging leader with 40 years of experience in food science and packaging. As founder of Packaging Technology and Research LLC, her mission is to enable a more sustainable food system by advancing innovations that extend food shelf life and reduce waste. Dr. Sand specializes in leading cross-functional teams, developing technology strategies, and creating implement...

Kathleen Sanzo, J.D. is Co-Chair of Morgan Lewis' life sciences industry team. She centers her practice on regulatory and compliance issues connected to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) -regulated products. She leads and counsels clients on all legal and regulatory issues concerning food, dietary supplements, and cosmetic product manufacture, approval, marketing, and distribution; food, dru...

Campbell Mitchell, M.B.A., is Head of Food Safety and Compliance for Kraft Heinz North America. He has more than 30 years of international experience in food safety, quality management, and risk mitigation. Prior to joining Kraft Heinz, Campbell served as Vice President of Quality and Safety at Fairlife LLC, a $4-billion Coca-Cola-owned dairy brand. He has also held senior leadership roles with Ke...

Helena Bottemiller Evich is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Food Fix . She previously led coverage of food and agriculture at POLITICO for nearly a decade, winning numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious George Polk Award for a series on climate change and two James Beard Awards for features on nutrition and science. In 2022, she was a James Beard Award finalist for a deep dive on...

Frank Yiannas, M.P.H. is a renowned food safety leader and executive, food system futurist, author, professor, past president of the International Association of Food Protection (IAFP), and advocate for consumers. Most recently, he served under two different administrations as the Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a position he held fr...

In this episode of Food Safety Matters , we discuss the top food safety stories of 2025 and their implications. We cover: The Trump Administration's impact on federal agencies overseeing food safety [7:52] : FDA, CDC Ordered to Temporarily Pause All External Communications, Obtain Trump Admin Approval RFK Jr. Confirmed as HHS Secretary; Widespread Firings Coming to FDA, CDC USDA Inspector General...

Brian P. Sylvester, J.D. is a Partner and Head of Food Regulatory in Morrison Foerster's FDA and Healthcare Regulatory and Compliance Group, and is an influential thought leader and practitioner in food tech regulation. Brian counsels clients across the full lifecycle of regulated products, serving global brands, startups, life sciences companies, investors, and trade associations. In the area of...

Jay Berglind is a nationally respected food safety expert and the principal of Aegis Foods, a consultancy focused on strengthening food safety systems across the supply chain. Aegis Foods is also the maker of Fearless Eggs, the only pasteurized in-shell and poached eggs that are safe to eat raw. With more than 25 years of experience in food manufacturing, regulatory compliance, and quality assuran...

Tom Black is the First Assistant Secretary of the Exports and Veterinary Services Division at the Australian Government's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry. In this role, he is responsible for regulating and facilitating Australia's exports of animal commodities and certified organic products, while also providing the overarching technical food safety framework for both food expor...

Kris Sollid, R.D. , is the Senior Director for Research and Consumer Insights at the International Food Information Council (IFIC). A registered dietitian with a passion for improving nutrition science communications, his role at IFIC includes leading consumer research projects, educational resource development, social and traditional media engagement, and written contributions to various consumer...

John Spink, Ph. D. is the Director and Lead Instructor for the Food Fraud Prevention Academy, as well as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Supply Chain Management (SCM) in the College of Business at Michigan State University (MSU). His food fraud prevention research focuses on policy and strategy to understand and prevent supply chain disruptions and to implement procurement best practic...