Steven Mandernach is the executive director of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), which unites high-level regulatory officials, industry representatives, trade associations, academia, and consumer organizations. Prior to becoming executive director in 2018, Steve was the bureau chief for food and consumer safety at the Iowa Department of Inspections. He is a past president of AFDO and current co-chair of the Association’s Laws and Regulations committee. He has a J.D. from Drake University Law School.

Ernest Julian, Ph.D. is chief of the Center for Food Protection for the Rhode Island Department of Health, a position he has held for the last 30 years. Prior to this, he was with the Connecticut Department of Health for 14 years. He is president of the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO) and he has served as AFDO’s representative to the Council to Improve Foodborne Outbreak Response (CIFOR), and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s FSMA Surveillance Workgroup. Ernie is also an adjunct assistant professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice at Brown University.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to Steve and Ernie [37:07] about:

• Recruiting and retaining employees in food regulation and industry sectors
• Proper allocation of resources for food facility inspections
• The importance of follow-up after a less than stellar inspection
• Teachable moments and their effect on behavioral change with consumers
• How upper management can become powerful advocates for inspectors in the field
• How AFDO approaches messaging with consumer audiences
• Leafy greens contamination
• Ongoing and potential future food safety challenges

We also speak to the International Food Information Council (IFIC)'s Joe Clayton (CEO) and Silvia Dumitrescu [16:25] about:

• IFIC's recent leadership restructuring
• How the organization is aligning itself with ever-changing consumer demands and needs
• Keeping science at the forefront of consumer messaging, and how social media has changed the way data is disseminated
• New research and data on food fraud

​Steve Mandernach's Articles in Food Safety Magazine
Keeping Food Safe in the C-Store Environment 
Unsung Heroes: State and Local Public Health Officials Innovating Outbreak Investigations
Responding to Harvey and Irma: Rapid Response Teams Take Action
Building an Integrated Food Safety System One Brick at a Time 
Integrating the Nation's Food Safety System: What You Need to Know 

Ernie Julian's Articles in Food Safety Magazine
Where the Rubber Meets the Road: RRTs in Action
Creating the Rapid Response Road Map: Collaboration Points the Way Forward

Resources:
AFDO Retail Webinars (Hepatitis A and Norovirus) 
FoodInsight.org  
IFIC Presentation: Trust in a Changing World: Consumer Perception in the Age of Social Media 

Q&A: "Scheduling Nightmares"
I have only recently begun listening to your show, and love the content. It is interesting and engaging while still being challenging, complex, and informative. There may be some past content that I have not observed that answers my question, but I have a question for your team.

With some recent spikes in demand, our plant has opted to fluctuate/extend schedules and has a history of regular (excessive) overtime requirements. We are fortunate to have a solid staff with dramatically improved retention and our plant safety mechanisms have been successfully over-hauled. Now, however, we have begun to ask operators to work additional days and also begin their shifts much earlier from (6 am to 3 am). This is having a directly negative impact on our sanitors who typically have to react to the changing production schedules, reduces supervisory oversight, and may lead to burnout. The QA staff is also not available to be on-site during the extended manufacturing hours. As a team leader in QA, I am attempting to demonstrate that there is sufficient added risk in these methods to rule them out except under defined circumstances. 

My question is about the probable impacts of varying, unpredictable schedules on food safety. 

Overall a good problem to have (product in high-demand), but we as an organization need to fully understand the risks to guide our actions. If you have any support, I appreciate it! 

Response from Mike Cramer:
What I can provide is more of my anecdotal experience with some of our plants where constantly changing and extended schedules ultimately lead to employee dissatisfaction, tardiness and absenteeism and ultimately turnover. We experienced this a year or so ago when we opened up our newest facility in Joplin, MO with the concept of continuous runs with built-in sanitation periods. However, the management of the process was inconsistent and we were not able to maintain an effective work staff because personnel were unhappy with not having a set schedule around which they could plan their family/personal life.

If the plant is regulated by USDA, it would have to provide the area supervisor with a set schedule so that an inspection for pre-op could be assigned; and the plant would not be able to run beyond the time they set with USDA; otherwise, they would run into situations where they are operating without benefit of inspection.

A possible solution would be to modify FSQA staff hours so that there is 24-hour coverage with overlap as needed. This would be dependent upon the size of the staff and their flexibility to work off-hours, but when I worked at a hot dog/sausage plant in Chicago many years ago I had to do this with personnel due to the time the sanitation team worked and pre-op needed to be conducted, the time that grinding and blending started and the time second shift finished at night. However, that was a much more consistent schedule, particularly since it was a USDA operation.

What I would suggest is that the individual also partner with other departments, such as HR, to determine the turnover rate in various departments and how this might impact their efficiencies. I’d also want to know, from an HR perspective, whether this inconsistency of scheduling could put the plant into a conflict with labor laws. Finally, the biggest factor is whether this shortening of the time for sanitation is having a direct impact on the sanitary operating conditions of the plant. Sometimes this is not noticeable immediately but “builds up” over time. It may be an indicator that you are not cleaning effectively due to fatigue or due to lack of time to be thorough.

News Mentioned in This Episode
Food Safety Summit Announces New Dates for 2020 Event Due to Coronavirus [9:39]
​FDA Updates Stats of Foreign Inspections Amid COVID-19 [10:28]
FDA's 2020 Leafy Greens STEC Action Plan [11:57] 

Sponsored By:

​Virtual Classroom - Our Virtual Classroom delivers the learning benefits of live, instructor-led training through an interactive, convenient, and cost-effective virtual platform. With Virtual Classroom, you can join a live training event from any location, while engaging and learning as if you are physically present in the classroom. Any of our public training is also offered for private groups. April’s course topics include:
Labeling of Food Products (April 7-8)
ISO 22000 Foundation + FSSC 22000 V5 Review (April 7-8) 
Food Defense Coordinator (April 15-16)

Johanna Velez is Vice President of Quality Assurance for Monin Americas, having joined the brand in 2002. With more than 27 years in the food industry, Johanna has a wealth of experience in leading, directing, and guiding the company’s food safety and quality programs at all Monin North America locations. She successfully led Monin to achieve Safe Quality Foods (SQF) and Organic certifications for both the Clearwater, Florida and Sparks, Nevada facilities, resulting in an "Excellent" rating for the brand’s food safety practices. Prior to Monin, Johanna spent five years at Wild Flavors (now Archer-Daniels-Midland Company) in Cincinnati, Ohio. She is a member of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), including the Florida IFT Division, as well as the Bay Area Manufacturers Association (BAMA). Johanna graduated from Louisiana State University and later attended Michigan State University to obtain her certification in Food Law and Regulations.

Carolyn Ross, Ph.D., M.Sc. is a Professor in the School of Food Science at Washington State University (WSU), Affiliate Professor in the WSU School of Medicine, and Director of the WSU Sensory Science Center. Since starting at WSU in 2004, Dr. Ross has established her lab and the WSU Sensory Science Center as a hub for graduate student training in the areas of sensory science and analytical chemistry. Specifically, the overall objectives of Dr. Ross's research and graduate education program are to understand the theoretical basis underpinning the sensory perception of foods and wines and correlate these attributes with quantifiable characteristics. Dr. Ross has also expanded her research to explore food texture perception in children. She has thrice been awarded the Institute of Food Technologists' (IFT's) Tanner Award for most‐cited article in the Journal of Food Science (in the Sensory and Food Quality section). Dr. Ross was also awarded the WSU Faculty Excellence Award for Instruction and is a Fulbright-Australia Scholar at Deakin University in Melbourne. She holds a Ph.D. in Food Science/Environmental Toxicology from Michigan State University and an M.Sc. degree in Food Science from the University of Guelph.

Lone Jespersen, Ph.D. is a published author, speaker, and the Principal and Founder of Cultivate SA, a Swiss-based organization dedicated to eradicating foodborne illness, one culture at a time. Dr. Jespersen has worked to strengthen food safety through organizational culture improvements for 20 years, since starting at Maple Leaf Foods in 2004. She chaired the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) technical working group "A Culture of Food Safety," chaired the International Association of Food Protection (IAFP) professional development group "Food Safety Culture," and was the technical author on the BSI PAS320 Practical Guide to Food Safety Culture. Dr. Jespersen holds a Ph.D. in Culture Enabled Food Safety from the University of Guelph in Canada and a master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Syd Dansk University in Denmark. She is also a visiting Professor at the University of Central Lancashire in the UK. Dr. Jespersen serves as Chair of the IFPTI Board and as Director on the STOP Foodborne Illness Board. She is also a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Food Safety Magazine and a member of the Educational Advisory Board of the Food Safety Summit.

Takashi Nakamura, Ph.D. has served as Vice President of Food Safety for Fresh Del Monte since 2019. Previously, he worked in various senior research and development roles at Bumble Bee Foods and Bacardi, was the Vice President of Global Product Formulation and Worldwide Research and Development/Scientific Affairs at Herbalife, and was the Category Technical Leader for Portable Wholesome Snacking and Frozen Breakfast at Kellogg's. Dr. Nakamura serves on the Center for Produce Safety (CPS) Technical Committee and the Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA) Food Safety Committee, and has represented Fresh Del Monte with the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA). He is an active member of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP). He received a Ph.D. in Engineering from Purdue University and an M.B.A. degree from the University of North Florida. 

José Emilio Esteban, D.V.M. was sworn in as the U.S. Under Secretary for Food Safety on January 4, 2023. In this role, he leads the Office of Food Safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), overseeing the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which has regulatory oversight for ensuring that meat, poultry, and egg products are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled.

Sandra Eskin, J.D. was appointed U.S. Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety on March 24, 2021. In this role, she leads the Office of Food Safety at USDA, overseeing FSIS.

Prior to joining USDA, Mrs. Eskin was the Project Director for Food Safety at The Pew Charitable Trusts in Washington, D.C., a position she held since November 2009. She also served from 2008–2009 as the Deputy Director of the Produce Safety Project, a Pew-funded initiative at Georgetown University. 

Steve Voelzke is a seasoned executive with over 34 years of experience in engineering and manufacturing leadership roles. His expertise lies in automation and electrical engineering projects, having successfully managed global-scale initiatives throughout his career. As Steve transitioned into the manufacturing sector, he brought his knowledge and vision to Robroy Industries, a prominent manufacturer. He assumed key leadership positions there and became a driving force behind innovation efforts. Steve's commitment to driving growth and innovation is evident through his numerous patents related to evolutionary products. His dedication to community service and philanthropy further highlights his passion for making a positive impact in his community and the industry.