2026 Speakers
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TOWN HALL
Kyle Diamantas, J.D.
Acting Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Steve Mandernach, J.D.
Executive Director
AFDO
Megin Nichols, D.V.M., M.P.H., D.A.C.V.P.M.
Director, Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases
CDC
CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
Ola Afolayan
Director, Global Food Safety and Regulatory
Kellanova
Sharon Beals
Founder
SKKB-LLC
Sharon Birkett
Vice President, Global Food Safety and Quality Assurance
OSI Group, LLC
Adrienne Blume, M.A.
Editorial Director
Food Safety Magazine
Caitlin Boon
Senior Director - Health & Nutrition Policy, U.S. Public Affairs
Mars
Ben Chapman, Ph.D.
Professor and Director, Department Head of Agricultural and Human Sciences
North Carolina State University
Conrad Choiniere, Ph.D.
Deputy Director for Regulatory Affairs (acting)
FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
David Clifford
Director of Food Safety
Nestle USA
Vanessa Coffman, Ph.D.
Director
Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness
James Davis
Senior Director, Global Sanitation
OSI Group
Liz Duffy
VP, Global Food Safety and Compliance
Walmart
Sandra Eskin
Chief Executive Officer
Stop Foodborne Illness
Eric Ewert
FSQ Zone Lead, Lab and Technical Services Department
Kraft Heinz Company
Laurie Farmer
Office of Retail Food Protection Director
FDA
Melody Ge
Founder
Women in Food Safety
Laura Gieraltowski, Ph.D., MPH
Foodborne Outbreak Response Team Lead
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Robin Forgey
AGMM, Food Safety and Quality Assurance
Costco Wholesale
John Handley, Ph.D.
Senior Director of Food Safety Science
OSI Group
Scott Hegenbart
Manager, Regulatory Affairs
Conagra Brands, Inc.
Jorge Hernandez
VP, Quality Assurance
The Wendy's Company
Tim Jackson, Ph.D.
Regulatory, Sr. Science Advisor
FDA
Matt Jenkins
Director, U.S. Food Safety & Quality Systems
McDonald’s Corporation
Lone Jespersen, Ph.D.
Principal
Cultivate SA
Cindy Jiang, M.S.
Senior Director of Global Food Safety Risk Management
McDonalds - Retired
Chitsanzo Chiko Kachaje, M.B.A.
Director of Quality Assurance and Food Safety ·
Home Market Foods
Deb Kane, MS
VP, Food Safety, Quality, EHSS & Regulatory
J&J Snack Foods Corp.
Larry Keener
President and CEO
International Product Safety Consultants
Gillian Kelleher
CEO
Kelleher Consultants LLC
Monica Khoury
Senior Quality Expert
Nestle
Christopher (Hal) King, Ph.D.
Managing Partner, Active Food Safety
Founder/CEO, Public Health Innovations LLC
Julie Kuruc, Ph.D.
Director, Food Safety Center of Excellence Food Safety Continuous Improvement Team
PepsiCo
Alvin Lee, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Processing Innovation
Institute for Food Safety and Health
Sean Leighton
Global Vice President Food Safety, Quality & Regulatory
Cargill
Glenda Lewis, M.S.P.H
Director, Retail Food Protection Staff
FDA
Steven Lyon, Ph.D.
Director, Food Safety - Field Operations
Chick-Fil-A Inc.
Steve Mandernach, J.D.
Executive Director
AFDO
Spir Marinakis
VP of Food Safety, Quality and Technical Services
Maple Leaf Foods
Drew McDonald
Senior Vice President Quality & Food Safety
Taylor Fresh Foods
Sara Mortimore, MSc, FRSPH, MIFST
Founder
Sara Mortimore LLC
Brendan Niemira, Ph.D.
Research Leader
USDA
Scott Oakland
Corporate Staff Engineer, Food Safety and Quality
Hormel Foods Corporate Services LLC
Kathleen O'Donnell
Chief Scientist
Wegmans
Amy Philpott
Founder
Philpott PR Solutions LLC
Brian Ronholm
Director of Food Policy
Consumer Reports'
John Spink, Ph.D.
Director
Michigan State University
Suzette Stalker
Director of Food Safety, Quality, and Regulatory Compliance
Target Corporation
Matt Stasiewicz, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Applied Food Safety
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Shawn Stevens
Founding Member
Food Safety Counsel
Glenn Stolowski
Director Retail Food Safety
HEB
Sabrina Terada
Manager, Food Safety Risk Management and Measurement
Yum! Brands
Roberta Wagner
Senior Vice President, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs
International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA)
Christopher Waldrop, M.P.H.
Senior Health Scientist
Office of Surveillance Strategy & Risk Prioritization, Human Foods Program, Food and Drug Administration
Lily Yasuda
Program Manager
Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness
Jeremy Zenlea, M.B.A.
Head Health and Safety, Office of General Council
Eg America
CERTIFICATE COURSE INSTRUCTORS
Karleigh Bacon
Director, US Food Safety and Quality Systems
McDonald's
Martin Bucknavage
Senior Food Safety Extension Specialist and Team Lead, Industrial Food Safety and Quality
Penn State University
Tim Jackson, Ph.D.
Regulatory, Sr. Science Advisor
FDA
Bala Kottapalli, Ph.D.
Senior Director, Food Safety
T. Marzetti Company
William Lachowsky
Food Safety & Education Consultant
WML Consultants
Lori Ledenbach
Founder
Ledenbach Food Safety LLC
Joseph Meyer
Global Microbiology Lead
Kerry
Kara Mikkelson
Director of Food Safety
ChemStation
Sara Mortimore, MSc, FRSPH, MIFST
Founder
Sara Mortimore LLC
Donna Schaffner
Retired from Rutgers University
Dr. Juan Silva
Professor, Researcher and Extension Specialist
Mississippi State University
John Spink, Ph.D.
Director
Michigan State University
SOLUTIONS STAGE PRESENTERS
Ellie Girard
Regional Manager, LUPRIPLATE Lubricants Company
Amanda Wilder
U.S. Sales Director, Provision Analytics
TECH TENT PRESENTERS
Mark Ebner
Technical Sales Director, Woodstream Corporation
Mike Fabian
Manager of CompuClean, Spartan Chemical Company, Inc.
J. Keith Jackson
Vice President of Corporate Quality Assurance, Performance Food Group (PFG)
Julie McGill
Vice President of Supply Chain Strategy and Insights, Trustwell