Name: Best Practices for Responding to a Foodborne Outbreak Investigation
Start: 2026-12-08T14:00:00-05:00
End: 2027-12-08T00:00:00-05:00

When a foodborne illness investigation begins, effective coordination among industry, state public health agencies, and federal regulators is critical. This webinar will examine best practices for navigating the first 24–72 hours of an outbreak investigation, including frontline investigative work, state epidemiology and environmental assessments, FDA expectations, traceability records requests, and common challenges that can arise during an investigation.

Experts with backgrounds in state and federal outbreak response and executive food safety and operational leadership will share perspectives on how companies can prepare for and organize an outbreak response, cooperate effectively with investigators, and build response systems before an incident occurs. Attendees will gain practical insight into the roles and expectations of industry and government during foodborne illness investigations, and how effective collaboration can support timely investigations and the best possible public health outcome.

Key takeaways:

Understand the roles and expectations of state agencies, FDA, and industry during a foodborne illness investigation
Learn how companies should prepare for and organize their response before an outbreak occurs
Identify priorities and common challenges during the critical first 24–72 hours of an investigation
Explore best practices for cooperating with state and federal investigators to support an effective public health response

Speakers:

Craig Hedberg, Ph.D., Professor, University of Minnesota and Co-Director, Minnesota Integrated Food Safety Center of Excellence. Craig Hedberg, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Division of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Minnesota and Co-Director of the Minnesota Integrated Food Safety Center of Excellence. He promotes public health surveillance as a prerequisite for effective food control, and his work focuses on improving methods for collaboration among public health and regulatory agencies, academic researchers, and industry to improve foodborne illness surveillance and outbreak investigations. With a background in public health practice, Dr. Hedberg also focuses on public health workforce development and works with state, local, and tribal public health partners to build capacity for preparedness and emergency response. He is a member of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, the Minnesota Environmental Health Association, and the International Association for Food Protection. Dr. Hedberg holds a Ph.D. in Epidemiology and an M.S. degree in Environmental Health, both from the University of Minnesota.

John (Jack) Guzewich, M.P.H., former manager, FDA CFSAN's foodborne disease surveillance and response coordination program. John (Jack) J. Guzewich, M.P.H. is a senior public health consultant specializing in foodborne disease epidemiology, outbreak investigation, and food emergency response. Since 2011, he has advised and trained public health and food safety professionals on surveillance systems, root cause analysis, and incident response. He previously held senior leadership roles with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, where he founded and led the national foodborne disease surveillance and response coordination program. Earlier, he built and directed New York State's statewide foodborne disease surveillance network and foodservice regulatory program. A former President and Fellow of the International Association for Food Protection, he has authored 33 peer reviewed publications and received multiple national lifetime achievement awards.

Robert (Bob) Manning, M.B.A., M.S., M.E.M., Vice President of Operations, Innovation Foods. Robert (Bob) Manning, M.B.A., M.S., M.E.M., has worked in the food and beverage industry for over 30 years in various facility and senior corporate positions. He is currently Vice President of Operations at Innovation Foods and is also the Founder and Principal Consultant at Manning Resource LLC. He has spent most of his time in operations and quality roles for large companies such as HP Hood LLC, Campbell's Soup, and Niagara Bottling, as well as consulting for major domestic and international firms. He is also the author of In the Midst of a Recall: Recall Management and Prevention Strategies in Real World Scenarios, which walks the reader through what actually happens in a major product recall. Bob holds a B.S. degree in Biology from Salem State University, an M.B.A. and a master's degree in engineering management from Western New England University, a master's degree in food safety from Michigan State University, and a master's degree in strategic management and executive leadership from Pennsylvania State University.

Moderator: Adrienne Blume, Editorial Director, Food Safety Magazine

Sponsored by: