TORONTO — Last night, the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) announced its award winners at its annual meeting’s Awards Banquet.
IAFP presented awards recognizing excellence in food safety to the following organizations and individuals:
Gavel Presentation to the Incoming President
Association members saw their organization’s presidential gavel change hands on the final evening of the conference. Incoming president, Tim Jackson, FDA-CFSAN, accepted the gavel from outgoing president Michelle Danyluk of the University of Florida.
Black Pearl Award
IAFP selected Compass Group North America as the 2023 recipient of the prestigious Black Pearl Award.
This honor is given annually to one company for its efforts in advancing food safety and quality through consumer programs, employee relations, educational activities, adherence to standards and support of the goals and objectives of IAFP.
Sponsored by F&H Food Equipment Company
Last year’s recipient: HelloFresh
C.B. Shogren Memorial
This year’s C. B. Shogren Memorial Award winner is Georgia Association for Food Protection. The award is given to an affiliate demonstrating exceptional overall achievement in promoting the mission of the IAFP (“to provide food safety professionals worldwide with a forum to exchange information on protecting the food supply”).
Undergraduate Student Competition
First place — Gabriella Gephart, The Ohio State University
“Isolation of Antimicrobial-Producing Bacteria from Artisanal Cheeses and Characterization of Potentially Novel Antimicrobial Agents Produced”
Second place — Elizabeth Yanez, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon
“Prevalence and Antibiotic Resistance of Escherichia coli Pathotypes Isolated from Fecal Samples of Cattle in Central and Northeastern Mexico”
J. Mac Goepfert Developing Scientists
Technical Winners:
First place — Blanca Ruiz-Llacsahuanga, University of Georgia
“Comparison of Three Air Sampling Methods for the Quantification of Salmonella, Shiga-Toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC), Coliforms, and Generic E. coli Bioaerosols from Cattle and Poultry Farms”
Second place — Amy Siceloff, University of Georgia
“Incidence of Multiserovar Salmonella Populations in Postharvest Meat and Poultry Products”
Third place — Devin LaPolt, The Ohio State University
“Diarrhea Illness Management and Associated Costs in Healthcare Facilities in Ethiopia”
Poster Winners
First place — Yesutor Soku, Tuskegee University
“A Comparative Study on Antimicrobial Resistance in Escherichia coli Isolated from Channel Catfish and Siluriformes Products”
Second place — Kaidi Wang, McGill University
“Fate of Viable but Non-Culturable Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium on Field-Grown Lettuce”
Third Place — Taylor Johnson, Oregon State University
“‘Red Light, Yellow Light!’: Evaluating the Anti-Listerial Potential of Dairy Isolate Metabolites Using a High-Throughput Chromogenic Assay”
John H. Silliker Lecture
Randy Huffman of Maple Leaf Foods, Mississauga, ON, was this year’s John H. Silliker Lecturer. This lecture gives an opportunity for an expert to present important and timely information on topics of significance to food protection at the IAFP Annual Meeting.
IAFP Fellow Award
The IAFP Fellow Award is awarded to professionals who have contributed to IAFP and its affiliates with distinction over an extended period of time.
This year’s award winners are Arun Bhunia, Cathy Cutter, Beilei Ge, Vickie Lewandowski and David Tharp.
Last year’s recipients: David Blomquist, DFB Consulting, Hastings, MN; James Dickson, Iowa State University; Lynn McMullen, University of Alberta, Edmonton, CA; George-John Nychas, Agricultural University of Athens, Greece; and Manan Sharma, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD.
President’s Lifetime Achievement Award
Jeff Farber, Thornhill, ON, a Senior Advisor for Index Biosystems, was awarded the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award. This award, given at the discretion of the IAFP President, recognizes an individual who has made a lasting impact on Advancing Food Safety Worldwide through a lifetime of professional achievements in food protection.
Last year’s recipient: Katherine M. J. Swanson, KMJ Swanson Food Safety Inc. (retired), Mendota Heights, MN
Honorary Life Membership Award
The Honorary Life Membership Award was presented to Kathy Glass, Associate Director and Distinguished Scientist for the Food Research Institute (FRI) at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, Lynn McMullen, Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science at the University of Alberta, Mark Harrison, University of Georgia’s Department of Food Science and Technology (retired), Stephanie Olmsted, Albertsons Companies (retired), Peter Hibbard, Hibbard Consulting Services LLC, Laurie Post, Director of Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs at Deibel Laboratories, Fumiko Kasuga, Global Hub Director – Japan, Future Earth Secretariat, and David Tharp, Executive Director for the IAFP (retired). This award recognizes IAFP Members for their dedication to the high ideals and objectives of IAFP and for their service to the Association.
Last year’s recipients: Zeb Blanton, SGS North America, residing in Longwood, FL; Leon Gorris, Food Safety Futures, Nijmegen, Netherlands; Dale Grinstead, Diversey (retired), residing in Highlands, NC; Paul Hall, AIV Microbiology and Food Safety Consultants, Inc., Lakeland, FL; Elliot Ryser, Michigan State University, East Lansing; and Edith Wilkin, Laprino Foods (retired), residing in Castle Rock, CO.
Harry Haverland Citation Award
The Harry Haverland Citation Award was awarded to Abani Kumar Pradhan, Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science and for the Center for Food Safety and Security at the University of Maryland, for his years of devotion to the ideals and objectives of the Association.
Sponsored by Eurofins
Last year’s recipient: Francisco Diez-Gonzalez, University of Georgia, Griffin
Food Safety Innovation Award
Vitsab International AB received the Food Safety Innovation Award, given for the development of Predictive Diagnostics, its innovative new approach to food safety and quality testing.
Sponsored by Walmart
Last year’s recipient: bioMérieux, Hazelwood, MO
International Leadership Award
The International Leadership Award was presented to Panagiotis Skandamis, Professor of Food Microbiology and Food Hygiene at the Agricultural University of Athens in Greece, for his dedication to the high ideals and objectives of IAFP and for promotion of the mission of the Association in countries outside of the United States and Canada.
Sponsored by Diversey
Last year’s recipient: Arie Havelaar, University of Florida, Gainesville
Food Safety Award
Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance received the Food Safety Award in recognition of a long history of outstanding contributions to food safety research and education.
Sponsored by Consumer Brands Association (CBA)
Last year’s recipient: Ann Marie McNamara, U.S. Foods, Hoffman Estates, IL
Frozen Food Foundation Freezing Research Award
The Frozen Food Foundation Freezing Research Award was presented to Craig Hedberg, Epidemiologist and Professor in the Division of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Minnesota, School of Public Health (SPH) in Minneapolis. This award honors an individual, group, or organization for preeminence and outstanding contributions in research that impacts food safety attributes of freezing.
Sponsored by the Frozen Food Foundation
Last year’s recipient: Jeff Farber, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Maurice Weber Laboratorian Award
The Maurice Weber Laboratorian Award was presented to Martin Wiedmann, the Gellert Family Professor of Food Safety at Cornell University, to recognize his service for outstanding contributions in the laboratory and recognizing a commitment to the development of innovative and practical analytical approaches in support of food safety.
Sponsored by The Fred and Elizabeth Weber Trust
Last year’s recipient: Kali Kniel, University of Delaware, Newark
Larry Beuchat Young Researcher Award
Abigail Snyder, Assistant Professor of Microbial Food Safety in the Department of Food Science at Cornell University, was presented with the Larry Beuchat Young Researcher Award. This award is presented to a young researcher who has shown outstanding ability and professional promise in the early years of his or her career.
Sponsored by bioMérieux
Last year’s recipient: Yaohua Feng, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
James M. Jay Diversity in Food Safety Award
The James M. Jay Diversity in Food Safety Award was presented to Salina Parveenk, Professor in the Department of Agriculture, Food and Resource Sciences at the University of Maryland East Shore. This award recognizes an individual who has made exceptional contributions to enhancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in the field of food safety.
Sponsored by Neogen
Last year’s recipient: Haley Oliver, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
Ewen C.D. Todd Control of Foodborne Illness Award
Keith Warriner, Professor in the Department of Food Science at the University of Guelph, Canada, is the recipient of the Ewen C.D. Todd Control of Foodborne Illness Award. This award recognizes an individual for dedicated and exceptional contributions to the reduction of risks of foodborne illness.
Sponsored by Marler Clark
Last year’s recipient: Darin Detwiler, Northeastern University, residing in Los Angeles, CA
Sanitarian Award
Deb Smith, Global Hygiene Specialist with Vikan, received the Sanitarian Award to recognize her dedication and exceptional service to the profession of sanitarian, serving the public and the food industry.
Sponsored by Ecolab Inc.
Last year’s recipient: Charles Giambrone, Rochester Midland Corporation, New Hope, PA
Harold Barnum Industry Award
Jennifer McEntire, Food Safety Strategy, LLC, is the recipient of the Harold Barnum Industry Award. This award recognizes her outstanding service to IAFP, the public, and the food industry.
Sponsored by MERCK Animal Health
Last year’s recipient: Yvonne Chan Masters, John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc., Elgin, IL
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