Speakers2023

Fabien Robert Currently head of zone AMS for Nestlé Quality Assurance centres. He has worked for Nestlé for 22 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.

Adam has been involved in the food industry for 25 years. His career began in retail and food service roles which eventually landed him in quality and research/development roles at several major food companies before finding his home at the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin. As the Vice President of Food Safety, Quality & Regulatory Compliance at Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin, Adam works with Wisconsin dairy industry partners to provide education, training, strategy, and support in the areas of research, food safety, quality, regulatory compliance, sustainability, and crisis communications.

Adam has extensive product and process knowledge in natural cheese, frozen appetizers, dairy and non-dairy-based sauces, dairy ingredients, seasoning blends, and both fresh and frozen meat products. He is also knowledgeable in the areas of new product development, dairy product food safety, process improvement, analytical and microbiological laboratory techniques, and supplier management.

He is a proud Phoenix (University of Wisconsin Green Bay - Chemistry) and Wildcat (Kansas State University – Food Science).  He is also a Certified Food Scientist, ASQ Certified Six Sigma Green Belt, ASQ Certified Quality Process Analyst, ASQ Certified Quality Auditor, and Preventive Controls (PCQI) Lead Instructor.

He is currently on the Board of Directors of the American Cheese Society and is a former Chair of the Regulatory & Academic Committee. He is also Chair of Wisconsin Dairy Rules Advisory Committee, Chair of the Wisconsin Laboratory Association, Treasurer for the Wisconsin Association for Food Protection, and Chair of the Wisconsin Agro-Security Resource Network.
He has been married for 17 years, has 4 children, and In his spare time, he coaches youth sports and supports local FFA and Master Gardener programs in the state of Wisconsin.

·       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.

Dr. Odugbemi is a food scientist with a doctoral specialization in food safety . He has worked  in the beverage, bakery, dairy, milling, confectionery, as well as the meat and poultry sectors of food processing.  Dr Odugbemi is a prolific instructor and teaches many food safety, quality control, quality assurance, and continuous improvement classes. He has facilitated and instructed food safety  classes in almost all continents of the world. As a seasoned food safety auditor, he has audited many food facilities globally.

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. He is also currently an adjunct faculty at Osun State University, where he teaches food safety-related classes.

Working for the past 12 years for Grupo Bimbo in different roles throughout Operations, Technical Services and Quality & Food Safety, currently holding the position as Global Director for Food Safety.

Graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and later completed a master’s degree in food safety & Quality Management Systems from the University of Greenwich

Arnie Sair serves as the Head of Quality & Food Safety for Bunge, the world’s leader in oilseed processing and a leading producer and supplier of specialty plant-based oils, fats and proteins.  Arnie joined Bunge in 2018 and brings 20+ years of quality, food safety and regulatory compliance expertise to the company.

Bunge’s purpose is to connect farmers to consumers to deliver essential food, feed and fuel to the world.  With more than two centuries of experience, Bunge’s products are used in a wide range of applications such as animal feed, cooking oils and flours, as well as bakery and confectionary, dairy fat alternatives, plant-based meat and infant nutrition.  Bunge also has an important role to play in using its crop infrastructure to help fuel renewable energy solutions.

Before joining Bunge, Arnie spent 5 years as Head of Quality and Regulatory Operations with Signature Brands, the world’s leading manufacturer and distributor of decorating and confectionary products.  Prior to that Arnie spent 12 years in Quality & Regulatory Operations leadership positions with General Mills Inc, including experience with milled grains, boxed and frozen meals, and dry cereals.

Arnie received a Bachelor of Science degree in Foods and Nutrition from the University of Illinois, a Master’s degree in Food Science from Michigan State University, and his Ph.D. in Food Science from North Carolina State University studying foodborne viruses and molecular methods for their detection. 

Arnie serves on the Institute of Shortening and Edible Oils Technical Committee and the National Oilseed Processors Association Food/Feed Safety & Quality Advisory Group.  Throughout his professional career, Arnie has always strived to be an influential leader who has worked to build a culture that facilitates the development of high performing teams, foster positive customer and consumer relations, and develop external vendor partnerships that drive business results.

Research Assistant Professor, FSN

Project Leader, IFSH HTS Initiative, Illinois Tech

BSC. Cell Biology & Genetics, Minor in English Literature

MSc. Genetics, PhD Botany, UBC, Canada

 Prior to acquiring his doctorate degree, Dr. Behzad Imanian worked as a computational biologist and research fellow in the Genome Sciences Center, BC Cancer Agency, Canada. During this time, he contributed to the quality control of sequencing of the Bovine and Spruce genome and transcriptome sequencing and the Pleiades Promoter Projects. His PhD and postdoctoral research explored the genomic consequences of a long-term endosymbiosis in dinotoms.

Since March 2016, he has been leading the High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) Initiative in the Institute for Food Safety and Health (IFSH), at Illinois Tech (IIT).

Brian Perry is an award-winning food safety and quality assurance expert with 25+ years of experience directing and refining food safety and quality, driving innovative R&D processes, leading risk prevention, and refining operational standards for Fortune 500 companies. His management experience spans across multiple business units, facility locations, and organizational initiatives with specialized knowledge of HACCP and other food safety guidelines, a range of key food technologies, and various food types.

Through a successful tenure with Treehouse Foods Company, Brian has progressed through roles as Senior Director of Quality Systems and Vice President of Food Safety & Quality, and currently holds the title of Senior Vice President of Quality Assurance & Food Safety. With intent focus on directing the build out and establishment of the organization’s food safety and quality system, Brian was instrumental to generating growth through M&A while ensuring food safety and quality through the integration process. His strategic guidance has resulted in reduced recalls and overall supply chain risk; increased efficiency and compliance of nutrition labeling; elimination of waste and increased effectiveness of sanitation processes; and maintenance of vital regulatory requirements, certifications, and company and industry standards. 

Prior, Brian was Director of Quality for ConAgra Foods’ frozen foods business. He was a key member of the team that developed a microwave oven center of excellence that ultimately drove the industry-wide shift of NRTE food processing to meet the safety and quality standards of RTE products. Brian also led the launch and commercialization of major product lines, doubling the size of ConAgra’s Arkansas plant. He also co-developed Key Concepts of Food Safety and Quality System aligned with GFSI and SQF code requirements and led Focused Improvement projects and Kaizen events that drove a continuous improvement mindset across the organization. His previous roles with ConAgra included Manager of Operations Quality and various management positions.

Brian’s earlier career experience includes roles as Quality Assurance Manager for R.L. Ziegler Co, Inc. and Quality Assurance Technician for Zartic Foods.

Brian earned a Bachelor’s degree in Animal and Dairy Sciences and Meat Science from Auburn University. He is an SQF Practitioner through the Safe Quality Food Institute and holds HACCP Certifications in Seafood, Juice, and Food through the FDA.

A respected advisor and industry thought leader, Brian is a board member for University of Nebraska’s Food Allergy Research and Resource Program (FARRP), and active committee member of FMI the Food Industry Association, and a member of the Tracegains® Executive Advisory Board. He has delivered numerous speaking engagements at the International Association of Food Protection (IAFP) Annual Meeting and Food Safety Summit and is an expert contributor to a variety of industry publications.

Debby Core is the Vice President of QA/QC, Food Safety, and Compliance for Munger Farms and Monarch Nut Company. Debby’s vast experience has allowed her to continually grow and exceed expectations to promote food safety both with -in the farming and processing operations. Debby’s role has  expanded to  include sales and marketing as well export  compliance.

As a result of Debby’s passion for Food Safety, she  is well versed in the FSMA regulations and implementation  to assure Food Safety from “ Farm- to – Fork “.

Erin began her food safety career in regulatory working for county health departments to ensure environmental health protection. She then transitioned to quality assurance where she conducted audits of retail and manufacturing facilities. Now, as a Food Safety Scientist with Taco Bell, she manages programs and always looks for ways to improve the brand.

Geert joined Veeva Systems in 2021 as Director QualityOne Strategy, focusing on the Food & Beverage industry. After receiving his PhD in Applied Physics from Delft University of Technology, he joined Unilever R&D in 1998. He has 23 years of experience in Foods, R&D, innovation, Quality and Quality systems. 

Geert has spent most of his career working for Unilever’s Spreads Division, developing expertise in oils & fats as well as product & processing technologies. He published his work in peer-reviewed publications and holds several patents. 

Geert has led several regional and global product innovation projects, and worked 3.5 yrs in Johannesburg, South Africa, leading the Spreads R&D group for Africa & Asia. In 2015, Geert joined Unilever’s global Quality group, initially responsible for Spreads & Dressings. Led the development of several GMPs, and supported Engineering in various factory design projects. From 2017, responsible for various Quality systems, including supplier and manufacturing systems, and led Unilever’s global digital Quality transformation project, introducing Veeva QualityOne.

To deliver on the organisation’s growth plans, it is critical that the Middle Office Functions provide our customers with high-quality, safe products and world-class service; while simultaneously improving our organizational speed, agility, and efficiency locally and globally.

To this end, I am very pleased to announce that in early September, Hugo Gutierrez is joining Kerry as Global Chief Quality & Food Safety Officer. Based in Beloit and reporting directly to me, Hugo will partner with me and the global Middle Office leadership team to become a world-class supply organisation fuelling the organisation’s growth. Specific to his role, Hugo will be responsible for leading the strategic advancement of our Quality, Health, Safety and Environment ( QHSE) function to:

• Build a ‘Safety First-Quality Always’ Culture within the global organisation, ensuring consistently superior quality, safety and sustainability for all stakeholders
• Ensure all production facilities are optimally managed and operating at globally superior standards for food quality, health, safety and environment
• Develop our diverse, mobile , and globally-connected talent capability and build a sustainable pipeline of future leaders in QHSE and the broader organisation.

Aligned to their regions and integrated to the local businesses, the following leaders will now also report functionally to Hugo in his new executive role:

Adrian Sharpe, Vice President, Global Supply Quality; Noeleen Donegan, Vice President of QHSE for Europe & Russia; Patricia McGeough, Vice President of QHSE for North America; Ulises Carrillo, Director of QHSE for Latin America; Michael Woods, Director Global QHSE FI&A; Mary O’Neill, Director Global Quality Systems; Rick Heiman, Director Global Hygiene; and Cecil Hoffman, QHSE lead for Primary Dairy.

Hugo brings to Kerry a wealth of expertise and leadership. During his 24-year career, Hugo has been instrumental in building world-class QHSE organisations for international companies including Pfizer, Cadbury, General Mills and most recently, as Global Vice President Food Quality, Regulatory & Food Safety for the Hershey Company. He has a degree in Industrial Engineering from Javeriana University – Columbia and a MBA from Icesi University, Columbia.

In addition, Hugo brings real passion for fostering greater diversity and inclusivity, demonstrated from his role as executive sponsor for the Hispanic Intracompany Business Network at Hershey; his volunteer activities to support the Hershey school orphanage for their diverse students; and his technical lead role for Hershey’s Partners in Food Solutions programme in Africa.

Hugo is a frequent key note speaker at international forums including GFSI, NAFS USA, Global FS Europe and Chinese food Safety / FDA. Hugo, his wife Diana and two sons Julian and Santiago reside in Palmyra, PA and will be relocating to the greater Beloit community as he takes on his new global executive role with Kerry.

As Head of Quality for North America, Jean-Pierre Punsola leads a team that is responsible for food safety and quality along Ferrero’s supply chain, from supplier qualification to manufacturing facilities and logistics all the way to the consumer experience.

A veteran of the food industry, Jean-Pierre has experience in chocolate and confectionery industries as well as bakery ingredients, fast food, and dietary supplements, mostly in food safety and quality roles but also R&D, production, supply chain and HR. His assignments across Europe, Asia, and now the U.S. have helped him navigate many different types of organizations and multicultural environments.

He has Masters degrees in Food Science and Food Technology from AgroParisTech, and in Viticulture and Oenology from Institut Agro Montpellier, as well as post graduate business education from INSEAD France. Jean-Pierre grew up in a dual-culture home—French and Spanish—and is now a US citizen living with his wife Margaret in Pennsylvania.

Jeannie is a Senior Manager in PepsiCo Food Safety Team supporting various categories of beverage across North America. Since she joined PepsiCo in 2016, her expertise in Food Safety and Quality immediately impacted on PepsiCo's FSMA Compliance. As a result, she received a Chairman's Award in 2017. Key Achievements include Integration of newly acquired brands, new technology and supply in recycled PET, digital transformation on R&D deliverables etc which she earned several R&D Excellence Awards. She is currently working on Simplification and Innovation Transformation digital tool and taking accountability for Innovation Food Safety in Tea and Coffee Partnership while continuing to support recycled PET Food Safety compliance. She holds a PhD degree in Food Science and Technology specializing in food microbiology and food safety from the University of Georgia. She has two boys and one girl who love outdoor activities and 2-year-old Border collie.

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. He is the Founding Program Director of Drexel’s Food Innovation and Entrepreneurship Programs. He is the Vice President of the Upcycled Food Foundation and previously was the inaugural James Beard Foundation Impact Fellow, leading a national curriculum effort on food waste reduction for chefs and culinary educators. He 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 co-author or -editor of eight books including Barbecue: A Global History (with Megan Elias), Culinary Improvisation, and The Anti-Inflammatory Family Cookbook, and numerous articles in food studies journals, 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.

Josh Santo, host of the manufacturing podcast Conquering Chaos, has spent almost a decade helping manufacturers deploy connected worker solutions to combat rising costs, production delays, and quality challenges.

Katie Burell joined ASR Group in August of 2018 as the Director of Quality Management for North America.  Prior to this role, she held various roles in Mars, Incorporated including Quality and Implementation Director for Mars Food North America. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in Food Safety Regulation from Johns Hopkins University.

ASR Group is the world’s largest refiner and marketer of cane sugar, with an annual production capacity of more than 6 million tons of sugar. The company produces a full line of grocery, industrial, food service and specialty sweetener products. Across North America, ASR Group owns and operates six sugar refineries, located in New York, California, Maryland, Louisiana, Canada and Mexico. The company also farms sugarcane and owns sugar mills in Mexico and Belize. In Europe, the company owns and operates sugar refineries in the United Kingdom and Portugal as well as jointly owns a refinery in Italy. The company’s portfolio includes the leading brands Domino®, C&H®, Florida Crystals®, Redpath®, Tate & Lyle®, Lyle’s®, Sidul® and Notadolce®.  ASR Group is owned by Florida Crystals Corporation and Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative of Florida. For more information, visit www.ASR-Group.com.

Education:

Nutrition and Food Science, Pennsylvania State University

Career:

Kim has worked in Quality Assurance and Food Safety roles at Borden, Kraft, McCormick and Monterey Mushrooms.  She is currently a Food Safety Consultant.

She is passionate about food safety and the importance of sanitary design in food handling equipment.  Properly designed equipment is key to preventing product contamination and foodborne illness events.

Luis Carlos Chacón leads the BusinessCase team, a global boutique consultancy that works with multinational FMCGs to identify emerging and future business opportunities. Also, he has been a columnist for Forbes Latin America for several years (being nowadays top-rated) and currently finishing a postgraduate degree in Global Business at the University of Oxford (where he previously graduated in Strategy and Innovation); his educational background includes studies in Design Thinking of Stanford, and Futures at The University of Manchester, and Houston. In business, he has worked for more than nineteen years for the operations of Fortune 500 Companies such as Coca-Cola, Colgate-Palmolive, LVMH, Diageo, Kellogg’s, Unilever, Dannon, and AbInbev, among many others. Behavioural economics enthusiast (understanding the cross between needs and contexts) and believer in connecting the distant (linking the disconnected but inseparable) under the influence of socio-cultural changes in industries and consumption.

Matthew Stasiewicz is an Associate Professor of Applied Food Safety in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  His work uses risk assessment and improved data analytics to advance food safety microbiology.

At Michigan State University he earned both a B.S. in Biosystems Engineering, focusing on food process engineering, and a B.A. in Philosophy, focusing on ethics.  At Cornell he earned an M.S. and Ph.D. in food microbiology, working on risk analysis.  The lab has many projects using simulation and risk assessment to improve sampling and testing for, and management of, foodborne pathogens in large-scale food productions environments.

Melanie Braam is a leadership expert who works with teams to build strong relationships that facilitate individual growth and company victory. She has been in the food industry for 10 years, starting as a QC Microbiologist, and has since led multiple teams in both Quality and Operations. In her short time at Palermo’s, she has been promoted 4 times and is currently their Director of Quality Assurance.

Melanie learned the value of hard-work and tenacity at an early age growing up in a small town in Wisconsin as the second of six children in a single-parent home. She brings the lessons she’s learned from the adversity she’s faced to her work with other leaders as we all strive to improve company culture by empowering our teams to achieve shared successes.

When Melanie isn’t coaching the Palermo’s teams, she is coaching her teenage son, who dreams of playing college basketball. She loves plants, is allergic to champagne, and considers herself an amateur stand-up comedian.

Miri is an economic and organizational sociologist at Northwestern University, specializing in food consumption in the US and Western Europe markets. Highly accomplished academic and winner of the emerging scholar award from the food studies research network in 2021. In addition to her academic career, Miri is a Senior Research Analyst At Euromonitor International, researching the food and beverage industry in the US.

Ms. Maxwell, Research Fellow in Corporate Scientific and Regulatory Affairs at Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. brings expertise in global finished foods labelling and claims as well as additives and flavors.  Prior to Ocean Spray, she led the Scientific and Regulatory Affairs management function at Nestle USA responsible for all the retail/food service brands for North America. Her employment history includes Director-level global regulatory compliance group management at Cargill, Inc. Wild Flavors, Inc. as well as McCormick & Company and Givaudan where she describes her role as managing, motivating, coordinating and influencing multi-disciplinary functions to accomplish strategic business goals, anticipating regulatory obstacles/emerging issues throughout product lifecycle and developing solutions with other technical/commercial teams across global geographies (essentially herding cats!). 

Ms. Maxwell is a proud graduate of University of Illinois – Champaign/Urbana with BS degree in Food Science and additional post graduate study in Carbohydrate Chemistry.

Always lively and engaging, Ms. Maxwell turns conventional wisdom on its ear using comprehensive data that offers a compelling look at new regulatory trends. Her insights are drawn in part from Washington DC colleagues, as well as her global network “cabinet” of industry professionals and the occasional bureaucrat.

Ms. Maxwell’s address comes during a remarkable time in the global food industry’s history. Global supply chain and global markets require nimble expertise in labelling in addition to strong food science thinking in label development. Careful consideration of documentation from suppliers combined with a regional mindset in a global market underscore success.

Neil Coole is a BSI subject matter expert who has more than 25 years of experience working in the standards development, testing, inspection and certification industry, who has presented on the important topic of food defense and cybersecurity, and how standards can be used to proactively identify risks and vulnerabilities, to leverage best practice frameworks.

Neil rejoined BSI in 2018 from BRC Global Standards, as Food & Retail Supply Chain Director of the Americas, Neil and his team have been actively supporting organizations throughout the food beverage and retail industry to use standards to implement the necessary best practice frameworks to protect their reputation, manage risks, and improve trust.

Patricia Asante -Frempong is a seasoned Food Safety and Quality professional with 10 plus years of experience. She is a senior Quality Assurance and Food Aafety Manager at Stella and Chewy’s. Patricia has a vast knowledge in Food Safety, Quality and Regulatory Compliance. A cross-functional leader deeply committed to building a culture of enquiry, continuous improvement and statistical or science-based decision-making. A professional with demonstrated ability to inspire/mentor quality assurance teams and to implement latest QA programs for maintaining industrial best practices. She is married with two children. She loves to travel and organize fun events for family and friends. She is passionate about, mentoring young graduates and helping to connect people in her network for professional development and growth. Currently also serving on the Executive Board of CAP MKE (Collaborative of African Professionals in Milwaukee) EDUCATION: • Master of Business Administration, with an emphasis in Management. • Undergrad Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and Biology.

Randy Kohal is a certified food industry professional who combines experience in business management and supervision with a solid understanding of current sanitation practices and food safety management. He currently holds the title VP of Food Safety and Reliability at Nexcor Food Safety Technologies.

Randy’s career in food and beverage manufacturing spans over 40 years and he has help corporate management positions with manufacturers like PepsiCo and Rich Products. Randy is certified in internal auditing, advanced hygienic design, and is a PCQI (Preventive Controls Qualified Individual).

Dr. Tian is an accomplished researcher in the field of Environmental Microbiology. He obtained his PhD degree from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 2015, where he specialized in studying the diversity and function of microbes in different environments. Following his graduation, he worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Oklahoma from 2016 to 2019, where he was involved in several projects funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), with a particular focus on microbiomes in soil, water, and animal guts.

In 2019, Dr. Tian joined the Institute for Food Safety and Health at the Illinois Institute of Technology as a Research Scientist. Here, he has been concentrating on the study of food pathogens and the development of bioinformatics tools using machine learning techniques. His extensive experience in both experimental and computational biology enables him to conduct research on microbial diversity and function using cutting-edge techniques, such as genomics, metagenomics, and metatranscriptomics.

Dr. Tian's research is centered on microbes from a wide range of environments, including food, animals, soil, groundwater, and seawater. He is adept at utilizing state-of-the-art technologies, such as third-generation sequencing (e.g., Nanopore) and machine learning, in his microbial genomics studies. His contributions to the field of Environmental Microbiology are highly valued, and his work has been published in several reputable scientific journals.

As a software engineer, Richard started his career developing solutions to create better jobs for frontline workers across the supply chain. Through this work he saw first hand the challenges that the growing skills gap in heavy industry is having on the workers which are critical to our economy. This led him to drop-out of university to start Zaptic. 

Passionate about people, Richard has created a people-first culture in Zaptic. Embodying the core company values of Transparency, Autonomy, Continuous Improvement, Simplicity and Efficiency, in all that he does. 

Zaptic is helping leading manufacturers digitise daily operations, achieve operational excellence and empower frontline workers to drive continuous improvement.

Sandra Johnson, Ph.D., is currently the Senior Director of Operations for SGS North America Health & Nutrition.  Dr. Johnson’s laboratory management and operations experience over the last 20 years has spanned both the academic and industry sectors.  In 2011 she joined a 3rd party laboratory testing and consulting firm, AEGIS Food Testing Laboratories, that was later acquired by SGS.  Sandra has been instrumental in developing and maintaining ISO 17025 accredited laboratory quality systems.  In her various roles, she has been directly responsible for both technical and management aspects of consistently delivering accurate and reliable information and services to her clients. Dr. Johnson earned her M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science with emphasis in Food Microbiology from Oklahoma State University. She also holds a B.S. in Biology from Missouri Southern State University.

Sara Jane has led R&D, quality, and regulatory teams throughout the NPD lifecycle from innovation to commercialization. She has over 10 years of experience in the natural foods industry and an educational background in Nutrition Science and International Food Law and Regulations. Her professional designations include Lead Instructor for the FSPCA Preventive Controls Qualified Individuals (PCQI), BRCGS Professional, and Certified Food Safety and Quality Auditor (CFSQA) through the American Society for Quality (ASQ). She works as a Networked Ingredients Functional Consultant for TraceGains guiding our Strategic Accounts through continuous improvement projects and streamlining their quality and R&D initiatives.

With 25 years of experience in Consumer Insights in multiple Food & Drink categories, Selma is most passionate about driving growth through innovation. Her career spans local, regional and global roles at several leading CPG companies across the world, including Kraft Foods UK, Heinz and Unilever in the Netherlands and Mars Wrigley in Chicago, USA. As Chocolate Portfolio Insights lead at Mars Wrigley, she leverages human insights to identify growth opportunities for brands such as Snickers, TWIX and Dove/Galaxy. Over the past few years, she has played a pivotal role in the innovation transformation at Mars Wrigley towards consumer-centric, fast-paced and agile innovation. Selma firmly believes that consumer empathy should be at the heart of all innovation initiatives. Only then are we able to develop products and packaging that truly delight our consumers? Our ultimate goal is to inspire moments of everyday happiness.

Julie McGill is the Vice President of Supply Chain Strategy and Insights at Trustwell. In her role, she participates on a number of industry groups and committees, sharing key information regarding evolving industry standards, and their application across supply chains. Before joining Trustwell, Julie spent over 16 years at GS1 US. She led the Foodservice GS1 US Standards Initiative, working with manufacturers, distributors, operators and trading partners to build a foundation for traceability and supply chain visibility.