SPEAKERS
TECHNOLOGY / BEST PRACTICES
Randy May, Director of Technical Services at Bonduelle Fresh Americas
Randy May is the Director of Technical Services at Bonduelle Fresh Americas, where he leads the his team of Project, Process and Packaging Engineering to provide technical insights in maximizing the efficiency of the Operations sector while ushering in new technologies and processes. He most recently oversaw the automation of the Bonduelle Fresh America’s BistroTM bowl line, which reduced production line head count by 40% while maintaining a high threshold of quality and efficiency. Before Bonduelle Fresh America, Randy worked several Industrial Engineering Manager roles for MillerCoors, Mars, Nutrilite and Nestle. He received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering Technology from Purdue University.
Thomas Reardon, Ph.D.,
University Distinguished Professor Michigan State University
Thomas Reardon is a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University, Fellow of the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA), and Honorary Life Member of the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE). Tom has been at MSU since 1992; IFPRI Research Fellow 1986-1991; Rockefeller Foundation Post-Doc with IFPRI in Burkina Faso 1984-1986; and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley in 1984. Tom’s studies the transformation of food value chains: the "e-commerce revolution," the “supermarket revolution,” and the “Quiet Revolution” (the diffusion of SMEs in the midstream of value chains), and their impacts on food industry business strategies, and on farms, consumption/nutrition, and employment in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Tom stayed 21years in those regions. Tom is in Who’s Who in Economics; was featured on the front page of the New York Times; was the first agri-food economist invitee to the World Economic Forum in Davos; has more than 39,000 citations and H index of 91 in Google Scholar, and ranks in the top 1.4% of the nearly 65,000 economists tracked globally in IDEAS/REPEC.
Mark W. Baum, CCO and SVP, Industry Relations – FMI,
The Food Industry Association
Mark Baum currently serves as Chief Collaboration & Commercial Officer for FMI - The Food Industry Association. In this role, Baum engages retailer, manufacturer, supplier, and service provider C-Suite executives to further trading partner collaboration, leading to operational improvements and growth opportunities across all segments of the food retail supply chain.
Baum is known for his intricate knowledge of almost every aspect of the food, beverage, consumer packaged goods (CPG), and retail industry. He is also recognized as one of the foremost experts in the design, management, and execution of strategic and commercial sales, marketing, and merchandising models across consumer facing industries.
Additionally, Baum is a Managing Partner of MARCAT Group, LLC, an advisory firm specializing in the active outdoors marketplace.
FOOD SAFETY
Barbara VanRenterghem, Ph.D., Former Editorial Director,
Food Safety Magazine
Barbara VanRenterghem, Ph.D., is the current director, editorial, at Lux Research. Previously, she served as the editorial director of Food Safety Magazine, a position she held from 2008 to 2021. From 2005–2008, she was the chief editor of Controlled Environments Magazine and the science editor of Animal Lab News and Lab Manager Magazine at Vicon Publishing. At Eaton Publishing (1999–2005), she rose from the positions of assistant scientific editor for BioTechniques and acquisitions editor for BioTechniques Press to the editor of content development and acquisitions and director of commercial product development. While at Eaton (then acquired by Informa), she served as the chief editor of Preclinica. She received a B.Sc. in biology in 1989 from Bowling Green State University and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology in 1994 from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.
Angela Anandappa, Ph.D.
President, Alliance for Advanced Sanitation
Chairperson, IAFP Food Chemical Hazards and Food Allergy PDG (2020-2022)
Dr. Angela Anandappa has been a member of IAFP for many years and has served as a Vice-Chair and is the current Chairperson of Food Chemical Hazards and Food Allergy PDG. She leads the Alliance for Advanced Sanitation and teaches food science and food safety risk management at Northeastern University. She has previously held positions as a research professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, at Kraft Foods (Section Manager, Supply Chain Food Safety), led the Food Systems Innovation Center in Kentucky, Biotechnology companies such as Vector Biotechnologies, Agilent Biotechnologies, and Operon (part of Eurofins). Angela’s first IAFP meeting was in 1999. Dr. Anandappa earned her Ph.D. in Food Microbiology from the University of Kentucky
Bob Ferguson, President, Strategic Consulting, Inc.
Contributing Author, Food Safety Insights Column in Food Safety Magazine
Bob Ferguson is a contributing author of the Food Safety Insights column in Food Safety Magazine and is a member of the Food Safety Magazine Editorial Advisory Board. Bob is also President of Strategic Consulting, Inc., a company that since 1996 has been the leading resource for market information in industrial diagnostics and global microbiology markets in food and beverage safety. Bob has more than 30 years of experience in microbiology, manufacturing, and laboratory businesses.
Cathleen Howick, President, CEH Consulting Services, LLC
Cathleen Howick has over 30 years of experience in the dietary supplement industry. Her work has included almost all aspects of Quality Control and Quality Assurance, including microbiologist, quality engineer, site compliance lead, and corporate auditor. She has a BS in Biology from Loyola Marymount University and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Regulatory Science with an emphasis in Food Safety from Arizona State University.
Cathleen is a Certified Quality Auditor and Certified HACCP Auditor. She is also an FSPCA lead instructor for Preventive Controls for Human Food, Foreign Supplier Verification Programs, and Intentional Adulteration Vulnerability Assessments. As part of the local ASQ Food, Drug, & Cosmetic Division Section, she has given numerous presentations on FSMA implementation activities.
SUPPLY CHAIN
Jill Hobbs, Ph.D., Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics
University of Saskatchewan, Canada
Dr. Jill E. Hobbs is a Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. An agricultural economist by training, her research focuses on consumer behavior, supply chain economics, and food policy. She has published widely on topics ranging from consumer responses to new food technologies, traceability and authenticity in agri-food supply chains, the regulation of health foods, and the impact of COVID-19 on food supply chains. Jill earned her Ph.D. from the University of Aberdeen in the UK and holds an M.A. from the University of Calgary, and a B.Sc. (Econ) from Aberystwyth University, UK. In recognition of her contributions to research and the agricultural economics profession in Canada, Dr. Hobbs was appointed a Fellow of the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society in 2017.
Brian S. Smith, Ph.D., Director, Business Development – Food Ingredients
Brian currently holds the position of Director – Business Development, Food Ingredients for Hawkins, Inc. which is based in Roseville, MN. In this role, Brian focuses on food safety, antimicrobial ingredients, and functional blends manufactured by Hawkins for meat, poultry, and prepared foods (dairy, soups, sauces, vegetarian). Additionally, he manages the Ingredient Works division which manufactures custom dry blend functional ingredients and flavors for the food industry. Brian received his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University in Meat Science and his M.S. in Meat Science and B.S. in Animal and Dairy Sciences from Auburn University.
Miguel Altieri, Ph.D., Professor of Agroecology
University of California Berkeley
Miguel A Altieri now Emeritus Professor of Agroecology, taught at the University of California, Berkeley in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management for 37 years. His research in California and Latin America focuses on the design of productive, biodiverse, and resilient farming systems. He is currently Co-Director of the Centro Latinoamericano de Investigaciones Agroecologicas (CELIA –www.celia.agroeco.org) and is a part-time farmer in the Andean mountains of Antioquia, Colombia. He has written more than 250 scientific articles and more than 40 books among them Agroecology: the science of sustainable agriculture, Biodiversity, and pest management in agroecosystems and Agroecology: science and politics.
CONSUMER INSIGHTS
MaryDee Marchan, Product Development Director at SmartyPants Vitamins
Marydee is a Venezuelan-born Chemical Engineer with a master’s in Food and Chemical Engineering, with more than 15 years of experience in the Food and Nutritional Supplements Industry. From very early in her career she was interested in Food Nutrients and their role in people’s wellbeing. Her career has evolved in Research and Development holding different roles within the Product and Process Development of Food and Nutritional Supplements. Her experienced ranges from the world of oilseed extraction where she studied the role of fatty acids in different health areas, developed a wide variety of Organic Foods, and worked in different areas of Nutritional Supplements. In the last 9 years, she has been focused on the Nutritional Supplement industry where she has worked in the development of vegetarian soft gels, researched novel ingredients and delivery formats, and led the global product development efforts on a brand new line of kid’s nutritional products. She is currently the Product Development Director at SmartyPants.
Emily Cruz, Director of Innovation - CuliNex
Emily Cruz is a classically trained chef and serves as Director of Innovation at CuliNex. She started in 2011 as a Product Developer Contractor and was hired as a Culinologist in 2013, making her CuliNex first full-time employee. As Director of Innovation, she is responsible for all scoping, developing, and executing innovation services for clients. Emily is a seasoned product developer, with an unwavering commitment to quality. She enjoys the daily challenge of strategizing and then creating custom solutions to fulfill each client’s unique objectives.