View the Programme
The Proactive Food Safety Conference - Counter Risks, Protect Consumers
22nd January 2025, Manchester
REGISTRATION OPENS
08.15 Registration, Informal Networking & GIC Welcome
09.10 Morning Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks
Kath Dunbar, Global Director Science & Regulatory Affairs, Anheuser-Busch InBev
Mike Gore, Group Head of Risk, Greene King
STRINGENT ALLERGEN CONTROLS
NEW STRATEGIES, PRACTICAL ADVICE | PANEL | Q&A
09.20 Ensure Customer Safety & Eliminate Cross-Contamination With Gold-Standard Allergen Controls
- Develop robust supplier management processes to catch cross-contamination early and drive down safety issues
- Ensure allergen controls are high in the minds of all colleagues and ensure consistent high standards through comprehensive training programmes
- How can the food industry harness its knowledge to educate consumers around allergens, and assist the public in making informed and safe choices?
- What improvements in allergen testing can improve processes and boost and standards for allergen controls?
Burcu Celebi, FSQA Lead Foods Central Europe BU, PepsiCo
Ashleigh Moore, Group Food Safety & Retail Technical Manager, Greggs plc
Janny Tang, Senior Quality Manager, KFC UK&I
Sarah Delaney, UK & IE Food Safety Manager, IKEA
Ashraf Shehata, Global Director, Quality & Food Safety, Mars Food & Nutrition
Mehdi Adjiri, Group Head of Technical Accounts, The Compleat Food Group
Irina Beale, Head of Technical, Wagamama
FOOD SAFETY CULTURES
09.50 Improving Safety Cultures Within Our Business
Will Smith, Senior Safety Manager – Managed & Lead Technical, Stonegate Group
10.10 Bonus Session; Reserved For TraceGains
10.25 Morning Refreshment Break With Informal Networking
10.55 Bonus Session; Reserved For Shield Safety Group
FOOD FRAUD PROTECTIONS
11.10 Reduce The Risk Of Adulteration & Food Fraud Through Resilient Strategies & Ensure Product Quality & Authenticity
- Drive traceability throughout complex supply chains and ensure consistent guardrails against potential food fraud risks
- How can tech advancements be harnessed to ensure product integrity throughout supply chains and drive down the potential for fraud?
- As Brexit, conflict, and instability increase supply chain risks, how can professionals ensure authenticity and quality of high-risk ingredients and products and reduce the risk of fraud?
11.10 Perspective 1
Kevin Barker, Group Produce SME & Integrity Lead, 2 Sisters Food Group
11.30 Perspective 2
Ruth Brown, Specialist Technical Manager, Marks & Spencer
QUALITY & INFLUENTIAL FOOD SAFETY CULTURES
REFRESHED & REVITALISED | PANEL | Q&A
11.50 Develop Powerful Food Safety Cultures That Reach All Levels Of An Organisation & Ensure Consistently High Standards Of Safety & Quality
- Culture starts from the top! Ensure leadership are bought into food safety as a key issue and ensure top-down support for culture programmes
- Drive consistency in food safety culture across complex global locations and ensure all colleagues are on the same page
- When culture is a notoriously tricky thing to measure, how can the results of culture programmes be effectively understood and communicated?
Jeremy Lockley, Senior Director, Food Safety & Quality Assurance, Five Guys
Zoe Stevens, Associate Q&FS Director Europe, Mars Wrigley
Linda Cudjoe, Head of Food Safety & Technical, Harrods
Roberto Buttini, Vice President Global Quality & Food Safety & R&D Strategy, Barilla
Dr Claus Tofting-Olesen, Senior Business Quality Manager, Arla Foods Ingredients Group P/S
REGULATORY COMPLIANCE & UPDATES
12.20 Maintain Consistent Compliance With Shifting Regulatory Requirements & Ensure Business-As-Usual Quality Standards During Regulatory Divergence
- How can food brands ensure compliance and business continuity in the face of rapidly diverging legislation between the UK and the EU?
- What potential legislative changes are in the pipeline that food safety professionals should have front and centre in their mind?
- How can technological advances assist food professionals in navigating complex regulations?
Ash Stretton, Food Regulatory Affairs Manager, Marks & Spencer
MANAGING INCIDENTS FROM A REGULATOR’S PERSPECTIVE
12.40 Managing Incidents From A Regulator’s Perspective – Exclusive Presentation With The FSA
Geoff Ogle, Chief Executive Officer, Food Standard Scotland (FSA)
13.00 Lunch & Informal Networking For Speakers, Delegates & Partners
13.30 Informal Breakout Discussions
A) Product Lifecycle Management
B) Contaminants
C) Quality Assurance
D) Pathogens
14.00 Afternoon Chair’s Opening Remarks
Chris Newbold, Head of Technical & Compliance, Ocado Retail Ltd
Claire Moore, Quality & Sustainability Director/Seafood & Added Value, Europe, Hilton Foods Seafood
AI & NEW TECH ADVANCEMENTS
14.10 Harness The Potentially Game-Changing Power Of AI & New Tech To Revolutionise Quality & Safety Processes & Become Truly Predictive With Food Safety
- With so many areas that digitalisation and AI could possibly have impact, where should food safety professionals be looking to begin to have the most immediate and demonstrable impact?
- How can AI assist food safety professionals in pulling together complex data points and assist in spotting potential risks before they escalate?
- It might be new, but is it better… how can future digital solutions and AI systems be analysed and assessed to truly understand if they are right for your business and drive demonstrable improvements?
Chloe Pallister, Senior Quality Specialist, Nestlé
SUSTAINABILITY & FOOD SAFETY
PANEL | Q&A
14.30 Carefully Balance Sustainability & Food Safety Requirements For High-Quality Products With Green Practices At The Heart
- How can food safety professionals assist in reducing food waste whilst maintaining top-quality safety standards?
- Whilst sustainability is a huge focus for all food brands, what steps can safety professionals take to guarantee that safety and quality isn’t lost whilst implementing sustainable practices or processes?
- How can food companies develop more sustainable packaging solutions, without bringing in new food safety and quality risks?
Tom Hollands, Innovation & Technical Director, Raynor Foods
SYSTEMS & METHODOLOGIES
15.00 Exclusive Presentation With The Kraft Heinz Company
Lee Reece, Global Food Safety & Quality Technical Excellence Lead, The Kraft Heinz Company
15.20 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner
15.50 Afternoon Refreshment Break With Informal Networking & Sector-Specific Breakouts
MICROBIOLOGY ADVANCES
DOUBLE PERSPECTIVE
16.20 Enhance Protections Against Microbial Threats & Ensure Customer Safety Through Stringent Microbiology Testing & Processes
- Harness key advancements in rapid testing to boost detection of microbiology threats and protect consumers
- What emerging microbiology threats should food safety professionals have heightened awareness of to ensure threats aren’t being missed?
- Prepare effectively for potential legislative changes around microbiology and ensure future-proofed microbiology strategies
16.20 Perspective 1
Kelsey McEvoy, Global Quality Systems Manager, Kerry
16.40 Perspective 2
Rachel Bayliss, Global Microbiology Lead, The Kraft Heinz Company
GOLD-STANDARD LABELLING
17.00 Assist Customers In Making Informed Choices & Drive Safety With Clear, Accurate & Safety-First Labelling Strategies
- With so much information on food and drink packaging, how can we ensure that allergen and safety labelling is truly helping customers and cutting through to truly inform them?
- Increase the value of sustainability claims on labelling and showcase green credentials whilst accurately informing customers
- Ensure compliance with vegan labelling and drive customer knowledge as to vegan credentials whilst also guaranteeing ingredients and potential risks are clearly labelled
Kath Dunbar, Global Director Science & Regulatory Affairs, Anheuser-Busch InBev
17.20 Afternoon Chair’s Closing Remarks & Official Close Of Conference
Chris Newbold, Head of Technical & Compliance, Ocado Retail Ltd
Claire Moore, Quality & Sustainability Director/Seafood & Added Value, Europe, Hilton Foods Seafood