“Providing Solutions for Today and Planning for Tomorrow” is the goal of the 2015 Food Safety Summit Expo & Conference, an BNP Media event designed to meet the educational and informational needs of all food industry members. The event will be held April 28–30 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore. It will be preceded, on April 27, by HACCP certification courses.

This year’s program begins on Tuesday, April 28, with a day-long forum titled “Integrating the Nation’s Foods Safety System.” Presented by The Association of Food and Drug Officials, the event will feature numerous sessions and dozens of industry leaders.

Three concurrent workshops will take place from 1–5 p.m. Topics are “Prerequisite Programs with a Focus on Allergen Controls, Personnel Practices, Labeling and Temperature Control”; “Novel Techniques for Food Handlers and Decision Makers to Reduce Risks”; and “Finance for Non-Financial Professionals.” The day will conclude with a welcome reception from 5–7 p.m.

Wednesday, April 29, will begin with four concurrent sessions from 8–9:15 a.m.: “Implementing FSMA: Opportunities for Collaboration”; “Who’s Talking to the Consumer? What We Know About Consumer Food Safety Education”; “Food Fraud Trends: FSMA, EU, EK, GFSI and Industry (Part 1)”; and “From Farm to Fork—Produce 101.”

At 9:30 a.m., William Daniels, former senior vice president of operations at Earthbound Farm, will moderate the keynote presentation, “Departmental Cooperation for Food Safety Success.” Participating in the event will be Charlean Gmunder, Fresh Express; Donnie Temperley, Hormel Foods Corp.; and Keith Carango, The Cheesecake Factory Bakery Inc.

The exhibit hall will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday and will feature several Exhibitor Showcase Theatre presentations. Industry experts will give free presentations at the theater Wednesday and Thursday, April 30, when the exhibition hall is open from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Four concurrent sessions will be held from 2–3:15 p.m.: “Implementing the Produce Rule: Managing the Options”; “Departmental Commitment to Food Safety: A Follow Up Discussion to the Keynote”; “Food Fraud Overview & The Role of Technology (Part Two)”; and “The Role of Foodborne Disease Outbreak Investigations in the Proactive Improvement of Food Safety Management.”

A networking refreshment break on the exhibit hall floor from 3:30–4:15 p.m. will give attendees a chance to relax and talk to colleagues before heading to one of four sessions from 4:15–5:30 p.m. Sessions topics are “Implementing the Preventive Controls Rule for Human Food: Development and Evaluation of the Food Safety Plan”; “Auditing: The Links Between Auditor Competence and Capacity”; “Eliminating Food Waste”; and “Achieving True Traceability Through Transparency.”

Wednesday’s schedule concludes with the Food Safety Summit Gives Back Networking Reception from 5:30–6:45 p.m., which will feature cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. New for 2015, the event is the result of the Food Safety Summit’s partnership with Feeding America, the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief organization, to aid in the fight to end hunger.

Thursday, April 30, the final day of the 2015 Food Safety Summit, will be jam-packed with educational sessions. From 8–9:15 a.m., attendees can choose from “Implementing the Imports Rules: Focus on Foreign Supplier Verification”; “Food Safety in Distribution, a View from the Middle”; “Food Safety for Food Trucks”; and “The Tweet-ification of Risk.”

The 4th annual Town Hall will take place from 9:30–11 a.m. New to this year’s panel, which will focus on pressing issues regarding regulatory agencies and the private sector, will be Dr. Christopher Braden, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Alfred Almanza, USDA. Other Town Hall participants will be Mike Taylor, FDA, and Joseph Corby, Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO).

Also during the Town Hall, NSF International will present its 2015 NSF Food Safety Leadership Awards, which recognizes individuals and organization that have made a lasting impact on food safety.

On tap from 2–3:15 p.m. are sessions covering “Implementing the Intentional Adulteration Rule (IA): Evaluation Facilities and Processes from a New Perspective”; “The Role of Science & Technology in Food Safety”; “Food Safety Culture: Insurance Against Catastrophe”; and “Social Media 101.” The summit will conclude with a presentation from 3:30–5 p.m. titled “Hot Topics: Leadership, PCA, Local Sourcing, Food Safety Systems and More.” The moderator will be Craig Wilson from Costco Wholesale; speakers will be William Marler, The Food Safety Law Firm; David Theno, Gray Dog Partners Inc.: Joan Menke-Schenzer, ConAgra Foods; and a spokesperson from Wegmans.

To register and review the full conference program, visit www.foodsafetysummit.com.