Home » Multimedia » Podcasts » Food Safety Matters » Ep. 19. National Restaurant Association: ServSafe and Beyond
Food Safety Matters
Food Safety Matters is a podcast for food safety professionals hosted by the Food Safety Magazine editorial team – the leading media brand in food safety for over 20 years. Each episode will feature a conversation with a food safety professional sharing their experiences and insights of the important job of safeguarding the world’s food supply.
William Weichelt is in the newly created position of director, Food Safety & Industry Relations, for the National Restaurant Association (NRA) and has over 20 years of experience in the foodservice and food manufacturing sectors.
The NRA is the largest foodservice trade association in the world by membership—supporting over 500,000 restaurant businesses. They represent and advocate for foodservice industry interests—with a focus on financial and regulatory obstacles. They also provide tools and systems that help members of all sizes get significantly better operating results as well as networking, education and research resources.
Specific to food safety their ServSafe Program provides comprehensive educational materials to the restaurant industry through face-to-face and online instruction. More than 5 million foodservice professionals have been certified through the ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification Examination.
In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to William Weichelt about:
Challenges the NRA faces with the start of their new Food Safety Industry Relations department
NRA’s current top priorities to help the industry going forward
Using food safety best practices that have been applied in manufacturing to create new best practices in foodservice and hospitality
Working with an industry that runs the gamut—from large operators with their own systems in place to independent operators who have no food science staff or expertise
The challenge of figuring out what topics to educate the industry on in the short-term, based on need, from edible marijuana to implementing a food safety management system
NRA's training and resources offered to smaller operators who do not have food safety staff
Challenges related to keeping ServSafe relevant and always in line with the FDA Food Code
Milestones that NRA has achieved as the organization's 100th-anniversary approaches
The importance of having everyone in an organization from the top down involved in the implementation and maintenance of a food safety management system
The new Food Safety Industry Relations department's future plans to help the industry in new areas: food fraud, food defense, traceability and figuring out how to apply these topics to the restaurant level, not just to manufacturers
How changing trends, consumer demand and product innovations impact how the food industry operates and how it all affects the industry’s approach to food safety
Scott Gustin is a native of Gloucester, Virginia, where he grew up on a small family farm raising registered Angus and Hereford cattle. He received his undergraduate degree and veterinary degrees at Virginia Tech in 1999 and 2002, respectively, before continuing on to receive his Masters in Avian Medicine at the University of Georgia. In 2004 Scott began his veterinary career at Cobb-Vantress in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. While at Cobb his roles included technical service for North America and Asia, internal veterinary service, and the World Director for Quality Assurance focusing on Salmonella eradication programs. Following Cobb, Scott worked for Tyson Foods for 12 years as the Managing Director of Veterinary Services for domestic poultry in Springdale, Arkansas. At presnt, Scott is a Technical Advisor for Elanco Animal Health focusing on bird health and food safety.
Brendan A. Niemira, Ph.D. is a research microbiologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (USDA's ARS) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, and a graduate of the University of Chicago and Michigan State University. His research develops and validates cold plasma, pulsed light, radiofrequency energy, and other nonthermal food processing technologies. He has published over 180 peer-reviewed research articles, book chapters, and critical reviews, is the co-editor and author of a well-regarded reference text, and holds one patent. Dr. Niemira is a Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) and a past member of the IFT Board of Directors. He currently serves on the Educational Advisory Board for the Food Safety Summit. A member of IFT, the International Association for Food Protection, and the American Society for Microbiology for more than 20 years, he also serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Food Protection and Applied and Environmental Microbiology. He received the 2016 U.S. Department of Defense Award for Excellence and the 2020 Federal Laboratory Consortium Technology Transfer Innovation Award.
As CEO of STOP Foodborne Illness (STOP) since May 2019, Mitzi Baum, M.Sc. is focused on expanding STOP's impact by concentrating on three strategic areas: families and individuals impacted by foodborne disease, company culture and practice, and food safety policy. By instituting a collaborative, consumer-centric operating model, STOP engages stakeholders across the food system to develop and advance solutions to food safety.
Sarah L. Brew, J.D. leads Faegre Drinker LLP's nationally recognized food litigation and regulatory practice. She is one of the country's leading food lawyers, representing food industry companies in a variety of complex cases, including many of the highest-profile and most media-scrutinized outbreaks and recalls over the past two decades. She also counsels clients on regulatory compliance, guiding them through U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspections, recalls, warning letters, and enforcement actions; and advises on food safety, labeling, and marketing regulations and risk management issues. As a leading voice in food law, Sarah speaks nationally at food law conferences and before industry groups.
Joelle Mosso, M.S., is Associate Vice President of Science Programs for Western Growers, where she works alongside growers to develop improved approaches to food safety and sustainability challenges. She is an entrepreneurial scientist with a passion for pathogenic food microbiology, risk assessment, and working toward practical solutions for the food industry. She has a background in quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA), building microbial testing laboratories, and evaluating and designing microbial diagnostic tools/approaches, as well as firsthand experience with produce and with managing food safety for complex international supply chains.
Nuno F. Soares, Ph.D., is an author, consultant, and trainer in food safety with more than 21 years of experience in the food industry as a food safety/quality (FSQ) expert and a plant manager. He is the founder of "I'm a SLO—Saving Lives Officer" initiative and the author of several books and articles on food safety, namely FSSC 22000 and ISO 22000 Blueprint and I'm a SLO—The Mindset and Framework to Develop a Positive Food Safety Culture. He works exclusively to help food safety professionals achieve a more fulfilled career by improving their knowledge, competencies, and mindset.