Food Protection Trends - October 2012 - (Page 605)

TRAVEL AWARd FOR sTATE OR LOCAL hEALTh OR sTATE AGRICuLTuRAL dEPARTMENT EMPLOYEEs Jeanne Garbarino City of Vineland Health Department Vineland, New Jersey What an awesome experience I had attending my first IAFP conference! The people, the topics and the camaraderie I encountered were amazing. The location and weather made it even better. Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity! What most impressed me about this meeting were the sheer numbers and diversity of groups all working towards a worldwide safe food supply. Every lunch table, line, session and social I attended presented interesting people I had never met, but from whom I learned something new. For instance, I learned what FDA Food Codes states were using. One was still using a code from the 1970s, which is concerning. I also learned that Switzerland has a very good handle on their allergens in retail facilities. I even learned things outside of food safety from one of the exhibitors who has a new inexpensive swab test for bed bug DNA! I did not realize the extent to which academia was involved in research on food safety and foodborne illnesses. The number of Ph.D. students doing extensive research projects in these areas is truly a benefit of which the world is unaware. The qualifications and research of their professors were equally amazing. The young students who called themselves the “Brick Burners” were inspiring. These children took on a food safety issue – Listeria on cantaloupes – and came up with a viable solution. The use of stickers that can only be washed off was a brilliant innovation. The stickers tell the consumer to wash the product before consuming. I expect we will be seeing these children in our field doing remarkable things for all of us in the future. The session on toxoplasma was really interesting as well. Dr. Robert Volken, M.D. of the John Hopkins University in Maryland, presented his findings on a link between toxoplasmosis and mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder. It made sense! Longterm consequences of foodborne illness are just one more reason why food safety is such an important issue that needs more funding. Other topics were also of value to me, such as the discussion of the Food Safety Modernization Act and how it will affect my department and retail facilities. This was discussed in several sessions and will surely impact all of us, if it ever passes. It is motivating to know that there are such varied teams of dedicated professionals throughout the world working to make our food safer. Sometimes when you are “out in the trenches” doing inspections every day, you forget that you have an entire army behind you with all kinds of support. In conclusion, IAFP 2012 was very well organized, ran perfectly and had very interesting topics and speakers. For a conference that large, the organizers did a phenomenal job. Thank you once again for this opportunity. With shrinking budgets, those of us in state and local governments are not usually allowed to attend these conferences and miss out. Tim Jenkins City of Minneapolis Minneapolis, Minnesota I am deeply grateful and thankful to Marler Clark, LLP, PS and to IAFP for the honor of attending IAFP 2012 and for the opportunity to witness the greatest thinkers in food protection converging on beautiful and historic Providence, Rhode Island for the purpose of sharing knowledge to advance the global effort to protect the world food supply. The posters, sessions, symposia, exhibits, special events and technical presentations were a testament to the zeal, knowledge and professionalism this workforce possesses. The networking was just as invaluable. This conference helped me fully realize the extent to which food protection is carried out by an international, multidisciplinary, collaborative team. More people should know that food is kept safe by a food protection community that crosses international borders. This was my first IAFP conference. I thoroughly enjoyed soaking up as much information as possible. On one of the days, I decided to attend the sessions with the longest titles and I found the presenters – often students – skillfully communicating their research. Conference presenters and facilitators were excellent at providing practical and useful information for the field. After I returned from the conference and was out on inspections, I told a bar owner and a restaurant manager about 605 OCTOBER 2012 | FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - October 2012

Food Protection Trends - October 2012
Contents
Sustaining Members
From Your President
Commentary from the Executive Director
The CHEF Project
Characteristics of Food Contact Surface Materials
IAFP 2012 In Review
Award Winners
Black Pearl Award Winner
Ivan Parkin Lecture
John H. Silliker Lecture
Travel Award for State or Local Health or State Agricultural Department Employees
Student Travel Scholarships
Minutes of the 2012 Annual Business Meeting
Committee Minutes
Executive Board Response to Committee Recommendations
Silent Auction Results
Exhibitors of IAFP 2012
New Members
What’s Happening in Food Safety
Industry Products
Coming Events
Advertising Index
Journal of Food Protection Table of Contents
Membership Application

Food Protection Trends - October 2012