Julia Stewart:

Hello, this is PMA PR Director Julia Stewart, and welcome back to PMA’s audio blog, “Ask Dr. Bob” with PMA’s Chief Science & Technology Officer Dr. Bob Whitaker. Bob, food safety is a priority produce industry issue and a priority focus for PMA. It will be at the forefront when PMA’s 2010 Fresh Summit International Convention & Exposition convenes October 15 through 18 in Orlando, Florida.  Can you tell us a bit more about what we’ve got planned this year?

 

Bob:

Julia, food safety will be a key theme of our Fresh Summit educational programming, both in the form of workshops and in a new Food Safety Solutions Center that will be right on the trade show floor. Let’s talk about the workshops first, and then spend some time on the Food Safety Solutions Center.

 

We’ve got several fantastic workshop sessions lined up to examine food safety from different angles. These workshops will feature the latest on food safety, help answer questions and deliver business solutions. One unique presentation looks at it from the sales and marketing side in the session “Are Your Business Practices Putting Your Company at Risk?” I’m speaking at this one, and I’ll help attendees understand that some common practices actually put their companies at greater risk for a foodborne illness outbreak. I’ll also teach them how to better protect your company and how to help your company’s food safety efforts.

 

Another national hot topic is local sourcing, but many buyers are now asking how they ensure local produce is safe. This will be one of the discussions in the session “Keeping it Local: The Pros and Cons of Local Sourcing.” We’ve got a great panel including Dave Corsi, vice president of produce and floral operations for Wegmans Food Markets Inc., Rich Dachman, vice president of produce for Sysco Corporation and Michael Spinazzola, president of DRS Inc.,  which handles purchasing for Subway restaurants.

 

Julia:

Two very interesting and timely topics for sure! What about the research side of things?

 

Bob:

Well, as you know Julia, PMA founded the Center for Produce Safety along with Taylor Farms, the University of California at Davis, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and in late 2007. And we actively support CPS’ work – for example, I chair the CPS technical committee that directs the center’s research program. Back in June, CPS presented results of eleven CPS-funded research projects were presented along with interactive real-world discussion at the first ever Produce Research Symposium.

 

In Orlando, Fresh Summit attendees will have a chance to hear all about the next generation of research results from the Center for Produce Safety and their real-world relevance in the session “Research to Real-World: The Best of Food Safety Innovations,” which I will moderate. Industry members won’t want to miss this chance to hear about the very latest produce food safety research and its application for their business.

 

Given the value that CPS and this research provide to our industry, I have to take a minute here to thank all our Gold Circle contributors whose generous financial support helps fund this important research work. If you’re interested in becoming a part of our Gold Circle: Campaign for Food Safety and helping bring to reality the research our industry desperately needs, you can find more information on our website. Just type “gold circle” into the search box on the home page.

 

Julia:

You’re absolutely right, Bob. Our Gold Circle supporters are essential to the progress we’re making in the food safety arena.

 

Speaking of progress, what about traceability?

 

Bob:

That is such a vital issue right now, we’ve dedicated two workshop sessions to it.  “Traceability in the Real World” and “From the ‘How’ to the ‘Why’: A New Look at Traceability” will both provide constructive information and insight into this topic. Attendees will find out where the industry is with the Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI), why it’s important to them, and how they can overcome identified challenges. PMA’s new vice president of supply chain efficiencies, Ed Treacy, will be involved in both of those workshops.

 

Julia:

Bob, there certainly are a multitude of opportunities for finding food safety information and solutions at Fresh Summit. Let’s take a break and come back to talk about the Food Safety Solutions Center next time.

 

Listeners, if you’d like more information on these sessions or on registering for Fresh Summit, please log onto our website www.pma.com and look for the Fresh Summit link under Events and Conferences.

Thank you for joining us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Julia Stewart:
Hello, this is PMA PR Director Julia Stewart, and welcome back to PMA’s audio blog, “Ask Dr. Bob” with PMA’s Chief Science & Technology Officer Dr. Bob Whitaker. Bob, we’re excited today to introduce a special guest to our listeners as we welcome PMA’s new vice president of supply chain efficiencies, Edmund (“Ed”) Treacy.

Bob:
We’re pleased to have Ed join our team, he brings tremendous expertise in logistics and supply chain management – our members now have another very talented resource with great industry experience. And the new position that he is filling continues a deliberate course PMA set to strengthen our staff with top-level subject matter experts who understand our industry, and can design and deliver the real-world business solutions our members need.

Ed comes to us from New Breed Logistics in High Point, N.C., where he served as senior vice president of operations. Ed designed and implemented distribution centers for various manufacturers to service major U.S. retailers like Wal-Mart, Target, Walgreens and Best Buy. 

Here at PMA, he will serve as our staff expert in developing supply chain practices to lead the produce and floral industries forward in these areas.

Ed, welcome to Ask Dr. Bob for the first of what I expect to be many appearances.  First, let’s clear one thing up … Is it true we had to import you?

Ed:
That’s right, Bob. I originally hail from Canada and am now both a U.S. and Canadian citizen, and I’ve been living in the states for four and a half years. I’ve spent much of my career developing and improving distribution capabilities for four major Canadian retail chains, including Sobeys and Loblaws. In fact at Sobey’s, I worked alongside former PMA director Wayne McKnight as senior vice president of logistics and engineering. I got my bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from the University of Toronto, and I also completed the Executive Development Program at York University in Toronto.

Bob:
You were also very involved as an industry volunteer in Canada’s traceability initiatives and worked closely with PMA ally Canadian Produce Marketing Association. You are a past chairman of the Canadian Pallet Council, you were a founding board member of the Canadian RFID Center, and you were vice chair of the Canadian Professional Logistics Institute. You know your business, and you’re known to our industry.

Julia:
Bob, what exactly will Ed be doing in this new position?

Bob:
His duties will incorporate much of the work previously managed by Gary Fleming, PMA’s former vice president, industry technology & standards. Part of Ed’s work will be to monitor and forecast trends related to supply chain efficiencies, and design and deliver related products, services and educational events for PMA members. He also will serve as staff lead and technical resource to the industry-wide Produce Traceability Initiative, and lead all of PMA’s data synchronization and alignment initiatives.

Ed:
I’m really glad to be working closely again with the produce supply chain. The food business gets in your blood, and I’ve missed it during the last few years I have been away from it. I’m also thrilled to be working with PMA. It’s such a well-respected organization, and really provides the base needed to help our industry address supply chain challenges and take advantage of all the opportunities that are available.

Julia:
Welcome, Ed, we’re glad to have you on the team, and we’re all looking forward to working with you to
help support and grow our members’ businesses. We know we’ll be hearing more from you in the future.

Bob and Ed, thanks for being here today. And thank you, listeners, for joining us!

Julia Stewart:
Hi, this is PMA PR Director Julia Stewart, and welcome back to PMA’s audio blog, “Ask Dr. Bob” with PMA’s Chief Science and Technology Officer Dr. Bob Whitaker. Bob, we’ve got fantastic guest with us today as we welcome PMA’s new Director of Food Safety and Technology, Johnna Hepner.

Bob:
That’s right Julia, we’re really pleased to have her join our team. Johnna joins PMA from Markon Cooperative in Salinas, where she was food safety director. Previously she served as producer buyer and quality assurance manager for Markon from 1993 to 2003, and before that as quality assurance manager for National Pre-Cut Produce in Salinas from 1991 to 1993. You can see that Johnna has a great deal of practical experience that we can draw on to benefit our members.

We brought Johnna on board to reflect PMA’s ongoing commitment to the area of food safety and technology. Right now there is a tremendous amount of activity around food safety, and we want to ensure we have the right staffing to meet our members needs. We are indeed fortunate to be able to add Johnna and add her depth and breadth of experience. Welcome to our team, Johnna.

Johnna:
Thank you, Bob. I’m excited to join PMA and to be able work with you and our key members in the areas of food safety and technology. I’m looking forward to using my real-world experience to benefit the members of PMA and the industry as a whole.

Bob:
Johnna’s responsibilities will include monitoring, evaluating and collaborating on produce-specific food safety guidance and standards development, as well as legislation and regulation. She will also represent the association to our members, commodity groups and allied industry organizations, as well as with external groups including federal regulators and legislators. We especially want to leverage Johnna’s extensive experience with small and medium sized growers andprocessors to help them better implement food safety programs in an efficient and cost effective manner. 

Julia:
Johnna, what does your past experience allow you to bring to PMA and our members?

Johnna:
I have a diverse background including quality assurance, processing, and food science, as well as food safety – that gives me a well-rounded approach to many of the issues, and will provide depth for our members to draw from. My strong buyer perspective in working directly with grower/shippers in the U.S. and abroad has enabled me to effectively communicate the issues our members deal with on a daily basis. All this, combined with your experience, Bob, really gives us a comprehensive approach.

Bob:
Another thing you bring to PMA, is a valuable balance between practical working knowledge of production and processing, and knowledge of food safety. It benefits our members to have that kind of real-world perspective. You’re someone who has been in the field and the processing plants…you’ve seen these programs at work and have firsthand understanding of how they fit.

Julia:
Bob, how will our members directly benefit from having Johnna join our team?

Bob:
Julia, it’s so important that we can reach out to all our members. There are so many activities going on now on the policy front, program implementation, and our educational efforts with members. Having Johnna on board gives us the ability to be even more actively engaged with our members. We see a lot of value in being able to increase our outreach to member groups around the country.

As we’ve already said, she brings a very well rounded approach to food safety and technology, and is very familiar with both sides of the equation, buyer and supplier. She has a background in quality assurance and food science as well, and perhaps most importantly, she brings a passion for doing things right when it comes to food safety and technology.

Johnna:
I like that word, passion. I do have a passion for food safety, and I hope to be able to relay that to our members.

Julia:
Thank you, Bob and Johnna. We’ll look forward to hearing more from both of you in the future.

For more information on Johnna or our food safety activities, please go to our website www.pma.com.

Thank you, listeners, for joining us.