Detwiler’s work at the university includes quality assurance supervision for all undergraduate and graduate programs. He is also a professor of food regulatory policy, responsible for the development and instruction of courses related to food safety, global economics of food and agriculture, and food policy for graduate students who work in the food industry. He additionally advises industry and government agencies, addressing food safety and authenticity issues in the U.S. and abroad. After the loss of a son to E. coli in a landmark outbreak 25 years ago, he consulted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in strengthening food safety policies, particularly in the areas of consumer education, product labeling, and their pathogen reduction program. In addition to serving in various educational and advisory capacities, his committee work includes appointments to two terms as a member of the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection for USDA, where his work improved standards and policies related to risk-based sampling. As the senior policy coordinator for a national food safety organization, he evaluated pertinent regulatory issues for the USDA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a consumer advocate in their stakeholder advisory group. He later served two terms as a council member for the Conference for Food Protection, identifying and addressing emerging problems of food safety to influence model laws and regulations among all government agencies. Detwiler received his doctorate of law and policy from Northeastern University with a research focus on state implementation of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act.

Past recipients of the award include Dane Bernard, M.Sc., Reginald Bennett, M.Sc., Larry Beuchat, Ph.D., Robert L. Buchanan, Ph.D., John N. Butts, Ph.D., Keith Ito, Allen Katsuyama, Connie Kirby, M.Sc., John W. Larkin, Ph.D., Huub Lelieveld, Barbara Masters, D.V.M., Ann Marie McNamara, Ph.D., William Sperber, Ph.D., Steve Taylor, Ph.D., David Theno, Ph.D., Bruce Tompkin, Ph.D., and Don L. Zink, Ph.D.

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