Program 2022

Adam is a dedicated and passionate professional, working as Director of Research & Development at Chobani. He has been with Chobani R&D since Jul 2013. Adam holds a Master’s degree in Food Science from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, working with the venerable Dr. MaryAnne Drake. He has 15+ years of work experience in the food and beverage industry primarily focused on the dairy R&D function.  He has developed or managed nearly every dairy food innovation coming from Chobani during his tenure and takes great pride in the sensory qualities of his team’s products.

On a personal note, Adam is married to Kristin for 14 years with 3 busy and amazing children. Adam enjoys taking advantage of a life in the West with cycling, running and snowboarding all while mixing in a healthy appreciation of scotch, beer and bourbon.

Dr. Juan “Juanfra” DeVillena, Ph.D. is a renowned food safety professional with well-rounded experience in the poultry industry. He started in the poultry industry working as a Research Assistant at the Food Safety Laboratory at the University of Maryland, Nutrition and Food Science Department. He completed his antibiotic resistant research in poultry at the U.S. FDA - Center for Veterinary Medicine in Maryland and later worked for Perdue Farms in Delaware, as Production Supervisor and FSQA Supervisor. He has been working for Wayne Farms LLC since 2004 in various roles with increasing responsibility, starting as a QA supervisor, QA manager, Plant Manager and Operations Manager at the Pendergrass, GA complex. He moved into his current role of Director of Quality Assurance and Food Safety in 2017. Juanfra received his B.S. in Food Science and his professional degree in Food Engineering from the Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina in Lima, Peru; his master’s degree (M.S.) in Food Science from the University of Maryland and in 2022 received his doctorate degree (Ph.D.) in Animal Science at Texas Tech University, receiving a nomination for the “Outstanding Research Award”. Juanfra is a devoted lecturer at international forums & conferences as well as at prestigious Universities such as Auburn University, University of North Georgia, Texas Tech University, University of Georgia, and University of Arizona. Juanfra currently serves as the chairman for the Advisory Committee to the Agricultural Technology Research Program at Georgia Tech and was featured as the “Science Profile” for the February 2021 edition of MeatingPlace magazine as well as in the MeatingPlace podcast #53 of February 2022. Juanfra also serves in several planning committees with the US Poultry & Egg Association.

Ray joined Prinova in 2016 to lead the quality programs for the flavor division. The department’s scope then expanded to include leading food safety and regulatory for Prinova USA. Currently, Ray is the Vice President of Food Safety, Quality and Regulatory and serves as a member on the executive team. 

His responsibilities include leading global standard councils that develop policies and programs to ensure quality and regulatory compliance, sustainability and a food safety culture.

Before joining Prinova, Ray began his career with FlavorFocus, LCC currently known as Brookside Flavors. He held quality control, operational and R&D resonsibilities and by the end of his tenure he was the head of quality and regulatory affairs. In this role he was responsible food safety, quality assurance, quality control, regulatory and safety.

Ray received a bachelor’s degree in Health Science and minors in Biology, Chemistry, and Physiology from Aurora University, Aurora, Illinois, and a master’s of business administration from Loyola University – Chicago Quinlan School of Business.

Yanyan is the global director of quality control and lab operations for ADM. ADM's purpose is to unlock the power of nature, to enrich the quality of life. We transform natural products into a complete portfolio of ingredients and flavors for foods and beverages, supplements, nutrition for pets and livestock and more. And with an array of unparalleled capabilities across every part of the global food chain, we give our customers an edge in solving global challenges of today and tomorrow. ADM has more than 180 quality control labs globally, which serve internal and external customers. Yanyan leads the global initiative of standardization, optimization, and continuous improvement of ADM quality control processes.

Yanyan has a Ph.D. in microbiology and a minor in biotechnology.  Prior to joining ADM, Yanyan served as a food safety scientific director with Danone, where she successfully led the company’s global allergen control program and food safety risk assessments in microbiology, ingredient, chemical contaminants and packaging. Yanyan has extensive experience in building global food safety programs (EMP, Food Safety Plan/Hazard Control Plan, Allergen Control Program, Positive Release Program, Process Validation, Chemical Contaminant Monitoring Program et.) and leading a high function team.

Amanda Torbett is the Director of Sales at TraceGains. Since 2010, Amanda has successfully led her customers through their food safety, compliance, and quality software buying journeys. Amanda is a consistent, award-winning executive with a proven track record of helping companies overcome business challenges. For over 20 years, Amanda has delivered exceptional problem-solving solutions for prominent companies throughout the Food and Beverage industry. Amanda is a consistent, award-winning executive with a proven track record of helping companies overcome business challenges.

Kurt Westmoreland is the Chief Commercial Officer for FlexXray and has more than 35 years of experience in food safety. His early career focused on analytical testing with Silliker and evolved into a trusted and well-respected sales and commercial operations executive with Mérieux NutriSciences for 28 + years helping the company expand to a fully integrated food safety provider. Throughout his career, Kurt has been an active member in several industry associations, including but not limited to: IFT, IAFP, AFFI, IPPE, BIFSCO, NAMI and several others.

Sol Rypin serves as Sr. Principal Team Leader of Supplier Quality and Safety (SQS) at Chick-fil-A, Inc. The SQS team focuses on 5 key areas: Risk Mitigation, Performance Management, Process and Production Control, Issue Response and Solutions and Innovation. In her role, she leads the team that ensures that Chick-fil-A products (Perishables, Packaging, Consumer Products and Production Equipment) meet safety and quality standards consistently. Her scope of work also includes Facility Risk Assessments and Distribution Safety. She joined Chick-fil-A in 2012 and has held safety and quality roles since then. Prior to Chick-fil-A, she was the Quality Assurance Manager at Flanders Provisions, a frozen beef manufacturer in South Georgia.

Sol holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Universidad Simon Bolivar, in Caracas, Venezuela and a Master’s of Science Degree in Food Science and Technology from The University of Georgia. 

Sol and her husband reside near Atlanta with their two children.

Dr Darin Detwiler, LP.D., M.A.Ed., is the Assistant Dean at NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY’S College of Professional Studies in Boston, Massachusetts. He is a professor of food regulatory policy, specializing in food safety, global economics of food and agriculture, Blockchain, and food authenticity. He additionally advises industry, NGOs, and government agencies, addressing food safety and authenticity issues in the U.S. and abroad. Detwiler recently received the INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR FOOD PROTECTION (IAFP) Distinguished Service Award (Sponsored by Food Safety Magazine.) Over the past 25 years, Detwiler has consulted with the USDA in strengthening food safety policies, particularly in the areas of consumer education, product labeling, and their pathogen reduction program. In addition to serving in various educational and advisory capacities, his committee work includes appointments to two terms as a member of the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection for USDA, where his work improved standards and policies related to risk-based sampling. As the senior policy coordinator for a national food safety organization, he evaluated pertinent regulatory issues for the USDA and the FDA as a consumer advocate in their stakeholder advisory group. He later served two terms as a council member for the Conference for Food Protection, identifying and addressing emerging problems of food safety to influence model laws and regulations among all government agencies. Detwiler received his doctorate of law and policy from NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY with a research focus on state implementation of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act.

Randy Kohal joined the KLEANZ Food Safety Team in January 2019 as VP of Food Safety and Reliability. He had previously spent 39 years in food and beverage manufacturing. His former position was a corporate food safety and sanitation role with Rich Products. Randy is certified in Internal Auditing and Hygienic Design. He is a PCQI and a Certified Food Industry Professional.

In his position as CEO and Managing Director, Mark is responsible for the long-term strategic direction, scientific and applied R&D initiatives, and positioning BOTANILINE® in emerging markets. While he is generally the ‘face’ of the company, Mark typically works with the top levels of the company’s management and leadership hierarchies as well as financial institutions to maximize the ROI for both BOTANILINE® and its strategic partners.

As the former CEO of MultiSorb Technologies, he established relationships with highly regulated international markets in the food, pharmaceutical, and electronics industries.  He led and improved his company over seven years from a negative net worth of $10,000,000 to an enterprise value of $150,000,000. 

Mark graduated first in his class from Ithaca College and received his Master’s Degree from George Washington University.

Pamela Hutton is the Director of Quality for Faribault Foods, Inc. in Faribault, MN and has over 25 years of food industry experience in product development, quality and food safety.  Pamela and her team’s responsibilities include development and maintaining all quality systems to ensure compliance to all internal guidelines and regulatory standards, the internal auditing of all Faribault Foods, Inc. plant and warehouse locations and co-manufacturing facilities and suppliers, auditing and qualifying all approved suppliers, and leading and directing activities associated with third party and customer audits.  Prior to Faribault Foods, Inc., Pamela spent over 8 years in dry food processing, including cereal and tortilla manufacturing.  Pamela has a Bachelor of Science degree in Food Science from North Dakota State University.  In addition, she has a Master of Science degree in Food Science from the University of Minnesota.

Dr. Juan “Juanfra” DeVillena, Ph.D. is a renowned food safety professional with well-rounded experience in the poultry industry. He started in the poultry industry working as a Research Assistant at the Food Safety Laboratory at the University of Maryland, Nutrition and Food Science Department. He completed his antibiotic resistant research in poultry at the U.S. FDA - Center for Veterinary Medicine in Maryland and later worked for Perdue Farms in Delaware, as Production Supervisor and FSQA Supervisor. He has been working for Wayne Farms LLC since 2004 in various roles with increasing responsibility, starting as a QA supervisor, QA manager, Plant Manager and Operations Manager at the Pendergrass, GA complex. He moved into his current role of Director of Quality Assurance and Food Safety in 2017. Juanfra received his B.S. in Food Science and his professional degree in Food Engineering from the Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina in Lima, Peru; his master’s degree (M.S.) in Food Science from the University of Maryland and in 2022 received his doctorate degree (Ph.D.) in Animal Science at Texas Tech University, receiving a nomination for the “Outstanding Research Award”. Juanfra is a devoted lecturer at international forums & conferences as well as at prestigious Universities such as Auburn University, University of North Georgia, Texas Tech University, University of Georgia, and University of Arizona. Juanfra currently serves as the chairman for the Advisory Committee to the Agricultural Technology Research Program at Georgia Tech and was featured as the “Science Profile” for the February 2021 edition of MeatingPlace magazine as well as in the MeatingPlace podcast #53 of February 2022. Juanfra also serves in several planning committees with the US Poultry & Egg Association.

John Budin is the Vice President of Product Safety and Quality at FONA International, Inc.  John obtained his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Minnesota.  He started his career on the faculty in the Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Enology at Fresno State University.  He then began work at a major flavor company serving as their Manager of Analytical Sciences and later was a Technical Manager.  In 2009 John joined Merieux NutraSciences (Silliker) as their Corporate Director of Chemistry where he was responsible for the technical integrity of all chemistry testing in North and South America.  In 2014 John joined FONA International. 

John is currently Vice-chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee of Institute for Food Safety and Health at the Illinois Institute of Technology and serves on the Advisory Council to the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota.  He currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Technical Division of Reference Materials (TDRM) with AOAC International; in the past John has served as the chair of the TDRM.  John currently teaches food chemistry, food analysis and food quality in IFT’s Certified Food Science Prep Short Course.  John has served many roles in the Chicago Section IFT including Chair, Treasurer and executive committee.  John has served as Treasurer of the Chicagoland Food Science Foundation, has served on the organizing committee of the North American Chemical Residue Workshop and was previously a member of GMA’s Food Industry Analytical Chemists.  He has served as a lecturer for several short courses offered at the University of Minnesota and IFT.

Jonathan Deutsch, Ph.D., CHE, CRC is Professor in the Department of Food and Hospitality Management in the College of Nursing and Health Professions at Drexel University and Director of the Drexel Food Lab. He was the inaugural James Beard Foundation Impact Fellow, leading a national curriculum effort on food waste reduction for chefs and culinary educators and was named a Food Waste Warrior by Foodtank. Before moving to Drexel, Deutsch built the culinary arts program at Kingsborough Community College, City University of New York (CUNY) and the Ph.D. concentration in food studies at the CUNY Graduate Center and School of Public Health. At Drexel, he directs the Drexel Food Lab, a culinary innovation and food product research and development lab focused on solving real world food system problems in the areas of sustainability, health promotion, and inclusive dining. He is the author or editor of eight books including Barbecue: A Global History (with Megan Elias), Culinary Improvisation, and Gastropolis: Food and Culture in New York City (with Annie Hauck-Lawson) and numerous articles in journals of food studies, public health and hospitality education. He earned his Ph.D. in Food Studies and Food Management from New York University (2004), his culinary degree from the Culinary Institute of America (AOS, Culinary Arts, 1997), and is an alumnus of Drexel University (BS, Hospitality Management, 1999). A classically trained chef, Deutsch worked in a variety of settings including product development, small luxury inns and restaurants. When not in the kitchen, he can be found behind his tuba.

Master of Science in Human Nutrition (Applied Biology), Bachelor of Science in Applied Chemistry. HACCP Certified and PCQI (Preventive Control Qualified Individual), Lead Instructor for PCQI (Preventive Control Qualified Individuals), an advanced SQF Practitioner, SQF practitioner, Registered SQF Consultant, ServeSafe Certified Manager, Certified ServeSafe Instructor and a registered ServeSafe Examination Proctor. Trained in vulnerability Assessment using Key Activity Types to mitigate Intentional Adulteration. More than 15 years of experience in food safety and food quality

As director of strategy for QualityOne at Veeva, Sophia is a resident quality subject matter expert and thought leader. Sophia brings to the team over 10 years of direct quality experience in regulated industries. She began her career with the FDA working in CBER’s vaccine lot release program and later moved to the FDA’s office of regulatory affairs as a regulatory microbiologist. Additionally, Sophia has managed CAPA, complaints, audit, and deviation programs in the medical device industry. Sophia has a master of science in bioscience in regulatory affairs from Johns Hopkins University and is an ASQ Certified Quality Auditor.

Michael Calderon is the Director of Quality and Food Safety at ALDI. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering and a Master’s in Engineering with specialization in Quality Systems and Productivity.  He brings over 15 years of experience in the e-commerce, retail and food industry focusing on Food Safety, Quality and Continuous Improvement, and as a University Professor teaching Lean Six Sigma and Quality Management Systems.

Jonathan Deutsch, Ph.D., CHE, CRC is Professor in the Department of Food and Hospitality Management in the College of Nursing and Health Professions at Drexel University and Director of the Drexel Food Lab. He was the inaugural James Beard Foundation Impact Fellow, leading a national curriculum effort on food waste reduction for chefs and culinary educators and was named a Food Waste Warrior by Foodtank. Before moving to Drexel, Deutsch built the culinary arts program at Kingsborough Community College, City University of New York (CUNY) and the Ph.D. concentration in food studies at the CUNY Graduate Center and School of Public Health. At Drexel, he directs the Drexel Food Lab, a culinary innovation and food product research and development lab focused on solving real world food system problems in the areas of sustainability, health promotion, and inclusive dining. He is the author or editor of eight books including Barbecue: A Global History (with Megan Elias), Culinary Improvisation, and Gastropolis: Food and Culture in New York City (with Annie Hauck-Lawson) and numerous articles in journals of food studies, public health and hospitality education. He earned his Ph.D. in Food Studies and Food Management from New York University (2004), his culinary degree from the Culinary Institute of America (AOS, Culinary Arts, 1997), and is an alumnus of Drexel University (BS, Hospitality Management, 1999). A classically trained chef, Deutsch worked in a variety of settings including product development, small luxury inns and restaurants. When not in the kitchen, he can be found behind his tuba.

John Budin is the Vice President of Product Safety and Quality at FONA International, Inc.  John obtained his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Minnesota.  He started his career on the faculty in the Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Enology at Fresno State University.  He then began work at a major flavor company serving as their Manager of Analytical Sciences and later was a Technical Manager.  In 2009 John joined Merieux NutraSciences (Silliker) as their Corporate Director of Chemistry where he was responsible for the technical integrity of all chemistry testing in North and South America.  In 2014 John joined FONA International. 

John is currently Vice-chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee of Institute for Food Safety and Health at the Illinois Institute of Technology and serves on the Advisory Council to the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota.  He currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Technical Division of Reference Materials (TDRM) with AOAC International; in the past John has served as the chair of the TDRM.  John currently teaches food chemistry, food analysis and food quality in IFT’s Certified Food Science Prep Short Course.  John has served many roles in the Chicago Section IFT including Chair, Treasurer and executive committee.  John has served as Treasurer of the Chicagoland Food Science Foundation, has served on the organizing committee of the North American Chemical Residue Workshop and was previously a member of GMA’s Food Industry Analytical Chemists.  He has served as a lecturer for several short courses offered at the University of Minnesota and IFT.

Deni currently works as the global director of food safety for one of the largest Agricultural and food commodity companies in the world (Archer Daniels Midland Co). In this role, he oversees human and animal food safety, with a global value chain that includes approximately 450 crop procurement locations, more than 330 food/feed ingredient manufacturing facilities, 62 innovation centers, and the world’s premier crop transportation network. ADM was named the world’s most-admired food-production company by Fortune magazine for three consecutive years: 2009, 2010 and 2011.

With extensive experience in food safety and quality management systems, Dr Odugbemi had previously worked for several companies including, Pepsi bottling, Weston Foods, the Kroger Co and most recently Wayne farms. Dr Odugbemi serves on several professional committees and advisory boards.

For Adam Brock, it all started in the 5th grade. That was the year of the Jack in the Box E.coli outbreak and it made the news in Cincinnati (and might have been in a Weekly Reader)! From then on, Adam always found himself working somewhere in the food supply-chain – always working to ensure the safety and quality of food products.

He started out bagging groceries, collecting carts, and stocking dairy products at a small, local company (Kroger) in Cincinnati and then moved to Wisconsin in order to study Chemistry and German at the University of Wisconsin Green Bay. It was during his time in Green Bay that has was first introduced to the different cheeses of the region – and fell in love! He then attended Kansas State University and received a Bachelor of Science in Food Science from Kansas State University. He has obtained additional education through the University of Wisconsin Madison, Iowa State University, Michigan State University and the Culinary Institute of America.

Adam has spent over 20 years in the food industry, holding roles in Quality, Research & Development, and Food Safety at industry leading food companies such as Smithfield Foods, Sargento Foods, and Papa John’s International.

When the opportunity came along to return to Wisconsin and help the dairy industry, Adam jumped at it! He is currently the Vice President of Food Safety, Quality & Regulatory Compliance for the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin where he works closely with producers, processors, and regulatory agencies to ensure that they have the knowledge and tools needed to ensure a safe, high quality food supply for generations to come. He works closely with the Center for Dairy Research and is also involved in the Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker Program.

Adam holds several board level positions within a number of industry non-profit organizations including the Wisconsin Laboratory Association (1st VP), Wisconsin Association for Food Protection (Treasurer), American Cheese Society (Board of Directors and Chair of the Regulatory & Academic Committee), US-IDF (Treasurer), and the Wisconsin Dairy Rules Advisory Committee (Chair). He is one of the original founders of the Dairy Food Safety Alliance - a collaborative food safety forum – along with the Center for Dairy Research and the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association.

When not immersed in the world of dairy or, Adam can be found enjoying time with his family on a little homestead outside of Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. He coaches youth sports, raises ducks, and likes to cook with cast iron.

Fabien Robert is currently head of zone AMS for Nestlé Quality Assurance centres. He has worked for Nestlé for 20 years, dedicated to the enhancement of the quality of life and contributing to a healthier, sustainable future. His past positions within Nestlé have included the Analytical Services Manager and Food Safety Platform Leader in Corporate international HQ, Project Manager in the corporate Nestle Nutrition Operation department, and Project Manager in the corporate Regulatory and Scientific Affairs department.  He previously worked 9 years in R&D at the Nestle research Center in Lausanne (Switzerland). Fabien is a graduate of the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1 in France, where he earned, amongst others, his Ph.D in Organic Chemistry. Following his university completion in France, Fabien earned his post-doctorates in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Organometallic Chemistry from Université de Genève/Sciences II & III in Switzerland. Fabien earns 56 publications in peers reviewed scientific journal and is an experienced speaker in scientific congress in food chemistry and food safety.

Doug Bouton is the cofounder of Halo Top, the iconic low-calorie ice cream brand that grew to more than $300 million in sales and became the #1 selling ice cream in the United States, outselling the likes of Ben & Jerry’s, Haagen-Dazs, and Breyers. Halo Top sold its business to Wells Enterprises in September 2019, after which Doug spun out Halo Top’s international operations into Halo Top International where he currently serves as CEO. Halo Top is sold in more than 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Australia, Chile, Russia, Korea, and China. In 2021, Doug launched Gatsby Chocolate, the first-ever and only low-calorie chocolate brand that’s positioned to disrupt the chocolate and confectionery category much like Halo Top disrupted the ice cream category. Doug studied mathematics and theology in college and, after graduating, he attended law school where he received his law degree.

Mahir is currently Vice President of Food safety at PepsiCo Inc ($70B annual revenue). He leads global food safety organization, which is responsible for setting the standards and governing the processes for delivering right food safety standards for all categories (Foods & Beverages) with every pack and every bottle produced by more than 1100 manufacturing plants in PepsiCo portfolio globally.

He has been working at PepsiCo for more than 25 years with gradually increasing responsibilities. He started in India, worked in various Operations/supply chain roles including plant manager of the largest bottling plant in India. He then moved to New York and worked on building quality systems for Non- carbonated Beverages. After that he spent 3 years in Dubai heading Food safety & Quality function for Asia, Middle East, and Africa region. In 2015, he returned to PepsiCo headquarters in New York heading FSQA for Nutrition category globally ($13B annual revenue). Then he led the global program management for R&D implementing digital transformation projects like SAP and Virtual development.

Prior to joining PepsiCo, Mahir worked at Unilever, India for 4 years in the area of Environment, Health & safety. He also worked for an Indian Company, Thermax, selling industrial products for 2 years.

Mahir is a chemical engineer and holds a postgraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

• Master in “Business and Engineering” in 1989 from University Catholic of Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium. 
• Master of Business Administration in 2000 at University of Dayton, OH
• Worked as Marketing Director for Flowserve Corporation (1990-2009), a world leader in industrial pumps, mechanical seals and valves
• In 2009,  became Co-founder of Realzyme LLC, a biotechnology company involved with enzyme solutions and subsidiary of REALCO Belgium, founded in 1968.
• Dominique is now the General Manager of Realzyme, located in Springboro OH.
• Dominique has 30 years of experience in serving the Food and Beverage Industries

Wadad Farhat is currently the Senior Director for the Snacks, Salty and Frozen Breakfast Category for Food Safety and Quality that oversees the execution and compliance of Food Safety, Sanitation, Quality Management Systems, Compliance to Design, and Kellogg Work Systems for 7 plants for the Kellogg Company. Kellogg’s is the world’s leading cereal producing company and the world’s second largest producer of crackers and savory snacks. Kellogg’s is also a leading North American Frozen foods company producing products that include Eggo Brand Waffles and Morningstar Farms veggie products.

Wadad has over 27 years in the food industry and joined Kellogg’s in 1994.  She has had numerous Research & Development and Supply Chain roles in the company.

Wadad holds a BS in Chemical Engineering and MS in Food Processing Engineering from the Ohio State University.

Larry Sigler is Director of Food Safety for Waffle House. His main duties entail development of food safety policies for the company and coordination of these policies with the Operations Team. As a 22-year Associate, Larry has been instrumental in development of training for the Waffle House Team as well as working with numerous departments in the ongoing food safety initiatives in place.

As a member of the Corporate Crisis Team, he’s taken part in over fourteen responses to hurricanes as well as other crisis situations. His primary duty during a crisis is to coordinate Waffle House’s response activities with health department and emergency management teams in the affected area, whether on the ground or from the corporate office. Larry is a member of the Conference for Food Protection, AFDO, and numerous state organizations where Waffle House restaurants are located.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Larry has taken the lead in creating additional policies and procedures related to the crisis, such as development of enhanced sanitation procedures and coordination with local Health Department officials to ensure each location remains in compliance with mandates in their area. He has also overseen the tracking of positive Associate and Management cases along with the quarantine and testing of any staff as deemed necessary due to possible exposure in or outside of the workplace.

Graduated from Penn State University B.S. Food Science in 2008. Graduated from Western Governers University M.B.A in 2017.  I have been working in the food industry since graduating in 2008 and in Food Safety and Quality assurance since 2009.  I’ve been in a variety of food categories including RTE meat products, aseptic juice production, fortified powdered products, confection, regulatory, and I am currently the Director of Food Safety and Quality for the Ziegenfelder Company based out of Wheeling, West Virginia. Ziegenfelder is the producer of the Budget $aver Twinpop ice pops. We currently have 3 manufacturing locations across the country.

Tamara Qtami is the Director of Investigation Branch in the FDA Office of Regulatory Affairs, Office of Human and Animal Food Operations, Division East VI, which covers Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. Tamara began her FDA career in February 2009 as an Investigator in the Chicago District, O’Hare Resident Post conducting import operations, which included joint collaboration with Customs and Border Protection and other Government Agencies. Tamara also worked with the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations for dietary supplement adulteration cases, one of which led to criminal prosecution for a dealer in Louisiana. She developed a case that led to mass seizure of misbranded product adulterated with vardenafil which led to an FDA Group Recognition Award for Chicago District in 2014. Tamara became Supervisory Investigator in the FDA Chicago District in June 2014, and was promoted to Director of Investigations Branch in 2017. Prior to joining FDA, Tamara worked as a Microbiologist at Silliker Laboratory in Chicago Heights, IL. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology, from Loyola University Chicago.

Christopher Young came to the FBI in Chicago as an Intelligence Analyst in January 2018 after retiring from the 5th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team, IL Army National Guard. He has worked with weapons of mass destruction and hazardous materials since 1999, during which time he provided subject matter expertise related to chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear materials before, during, and after potential WMD terrorist events and worked with a vast array of federal, state, and local agencies.

Kim is a food safety and quality assurance professional with extensive experience in the agriculture and food processing industry.  She has honed her skills while working for industry leaders such as Borden, Kraft, McCormick and Monterey Mushrooms.  Kim is a member of the International Fresh Produce Association’s Food Safety Council.  Kim is well-versed in Preventive Controls, Sanitary Design, Good Agricultural Practices, Regulatory Compliance, Continuous Improvement, and Leadership Principles.  She graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a focus on Nutrition Science and Food Science.

Gerri French was appointed as Executive Associate of Regulatory Operations for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service’s (FSIS) Office of Field Operations (OFO) in May 2020. In this role, Ms. French is responsible for supporting the OFO District Offices that oversee more than 6,000 geographically dispersed plants to ensure that meat, poultry and egg products are inspected for wholesomeness, safety and truthful labeling. Her work ensures that all three Agency Strategic Goals—Prevent Foodborne Illness and Protect Public Health; Modernize Inspection Systems, Policies, and the Use of Scientific Approaches; and Achieve Operational Excellence—have been successfully implemented.

Ms. French has served in a variety of roles during her 21 years with FSIS. Most recently, she was the Director of the Audit Liaison and Financial Analysis Division within the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO). In this role, she managed a multi-disciplinary team who focused on program evaluation and survey efforts, strategic planning and performance reporting, internal controls over financial reporting, and Office of Inspector General and Government Accountability Office audit liaison activities.

In other roles since joining OCFO in 2013, Ms. French served as Acting Director of the Performance, Evaluation, and Planning Staff and as the Team Lead of the Program Evaluation and Improvement Staff. In these roles, she directed and oversaw multiple evaluation and survey efforts focused on assessments of organizational effectiveness to ensure the highest levels of service to the American people and the safety of the food supply. She also promoted the successful development and subsequent adoption of innovative initiatives including an Agency evaluation framework that encouraged the use of evaluation findings in operational decisions. 

Ms. French joined FSIS in November 2000 and worked as a Program Analyst in the Office of Policy and Program Development and in the Office of Investigation, Enforcement and Audit. In both roles, she oversaw development of study designs, data analyses and reporting.

In 1994, Ms. French earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Studies from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Deni currently works as the global director of food safety for one of the largest Agricultural and food commodity companies in the world (Archer Daniels Midland Co). In this role, he oversees human and animal food safety, with a global value chain that includes approximately 450 crop procurement locations, more than 330 food/feed ingredient manufacturing facilities, 62 innovation centers, and the world’s premier crop transportation network. ADM was named the world’s most-admired food-production company by Fortune magazine for three consecutive years: 2009, 2010 and 2011.

With extensive experience in food safety and quality management systems, Dr Odugbemi had previously worked for several companies including, Pepsi bottling, Weston Foods, the Kroger Co and most recently Wayne farms. Dr Odugbemi serves on several professional committees and advisory boards.

Since August of 2005 Steve has been a member of the corporate leadership team as Senior Vice President of Technical Services & Corporate Quality for The Bumble Bee Seafood Company, one of North America’s largest branded seafood companies and a 120-year leader in the seafood industry. As an expert in problem solving, crisis management and risk management, he is sought out by his peers to help manage tough issues to successful outcomes. Steve’s current focus is on developing people, creating positive consumer experiences and driving food safety & compliance within the company and with its business partners, consistent with the company’s mission to create a new generation of seafood lovers.

Education:    

• Post-Doctorate, Molecular Biology, 1994, University of Wyoming
• Post-Doctorate, Microbial Genetic, 1992, University of Wyoming        
• PhD, Microbiology, 1990, University of Wyoming
• MS, Food Science & Human Nutrition, 1988, University of Wyoming
• BS, Biology, 1978, Arak Advanced College of Science 

• University of Wyoming,                                                                   9/90 - 10/94
• Lecturer Department of Molecular Biology,
• Researcher Department of Molecular Biology,
• Executive VP and Chief Food Safety Officer, American Foods Group      Currently

Roberta Wagner is vice president of regulatory and technical affairs at the Consumer Brands Association.

Wagner spent 33 years in public service, most recently as the assistant administrator of the Office of Policy and Program Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the agency’s lead policy position. Just prior to this she served as the deputy administrator of the Office of Field Operations at USDA’s FSIS where she assisted with providing leadership to a workforce of 7,800 inspection program personnel, including consumer safety officers and inspectors, public health veterinarians and food inspectors.

Wagner began her regulatory career at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the Office of Regulatory Affairs’ (ORA) Baltimore District Office in 1987, where she worked for nearly 20 years. Wagner also held the position of Assistant Commissioner for Operations in the ORA for two years, providing leadership to ORA’s field force, including investigators, compliance officers, laboratory staff and the ORA headquarters components that supported and interfaced with the field organization.

Previously, Wagner served as a director of the Office of Compliance in FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN). Wagner later served as the CFSAN Deputy Director for Regulatory Affairs and Associate Director for Food Safety Modernization Act Operations.

Wagner holds a bachelor of science in biological science with a minor in environmental science from Hiram College. She also holds a master of science in biochemistry from Bowling Green State University. She lives in in Harford County, Maryland, a Baltimore City suburb, and always keeps her house stocked with a myriad of CPG products that span the spectrum from food and beverages, dietary supplements and over the counter drugs, to household and personal care packaged goods.

Fabien Robert is currently head of zone AMS for Nestlé Quality Assurance centres. He has worked for Nestlé for 20 years, dedicated to the enhancement of the quality of life and contributing to a healthier, sustainable future. His past positions within Nestlé have included the Analytical Services Manager and Food Safety Platform Leader in Corporate international HQ, Project Manager in the corporate Nestle Nutrition Operation department, and Project Manager in the corporate Regulatory and Scientific Affairs department.  He previously worked 9 years in R&D at the Nestle research Center in Lausanne (Switzerland). Fabien is a graduate of the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1 in France, where he earned, amongst others, his Ph.D in Organic Chemistry. Following his university completion in France, Fabien earned his post-doctorates in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Organometallic Chemistry from Université de Genève/Sciences II & III in Switzerland. Fabien earns 56 publications in peers reviewed scientific journal and is an experienced speaker in scientific congress in food chemistry and food safety.