Dr. John Spink is the director of the Food Fraud Initiative at Michigan State University (MSU). Over the years, John's research has focused on economically motivated food adulteration, including the use of adulterant substances, counterfeit products, stolen goods, smuggled goods, tampering and intentional mislabeling. His leadership positions include product fraud related activities with the International Organization for Standardization, Global Food Safety Initiative's (GFSI's) Food Fraud Think Tank, and U.S. Pharmacopeia. 

John's global activities include engagements with the European Commission, INTERPOL and Operation Opson, New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries. He also serves as the advisor on food fraud to the Chinese National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment. John's outreach includes MSU’s biannual Food Fraud Massive Open Online Course that offers free training and certificates online.

In addition to John's many involvements throughout the food industry, he is also a frequent contributor to Food Safety Magazine.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to John Spink about:

• MSU's work in studying how companies and governments make decisions related to food
• Food safety vs. food fraud and why these two entities deserve to be looked at separately
• Why food fraud prevention is more important than simply discovering new cases of food fraud
• The many different types of food fraud and how criminals are getting even more sophisticated with their methods
• The Food Safety Modernization Act: where food fraud fits in, and where it doesn't
• Sudan red, melamine, horse meat and how these food fraud cases have brought the problem to the forefront
• Upcoming regulations and requirements for companies who want to be GFSI-compliant
• The Codex Alimentarius global food code
• How criminology, consumer behavior and other disciplines play a role in food fraud prevention

John Spink's Articles Published in Food Safety Magazine
Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Prefilter for FSMA, GFSI and SOX Requirements (Feb/March 2017)
Economically Motivated Adulteration: Broadening the Focus on Food Fraud (Aug/Sep 2014)
COVER STORY: Economically Motivated Adulteration: Another Dimension of the Expanding Umbrella of Food Defense (Oct/Nov 2013)

Related Content:
MSU Joins Codex for New Food Fraud Undertaking
IUFoST Bulletin Examines Worldwide Food Fraud Problem
Trends and Solutions in Combating Global Food Fraud
The Food Safety Challenge of the Global Food Supply Chain

About Don Schaffner
Dr. Donald W. Schaffner is Distinguished Professor and Extension Specialist in Food Science at Rutgers University. He has published over 150 peer reviews papers on a variety of topics including handwashing, cross-contamination, quantitative microbial risk assessment and predictive food microbiology. Dr. Schaffner has served on a variety of national and international expert committees, including service to U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the World Health Organization and Food and Agriculture Organization. He is active in several scientific associations including the International Association for Food Protection where he is a past-president. He holds a B.S. in Food Science from Cornell University and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science and Technology from the University of Georgia. Don co-hosts a podcast—Food Safety Talk—on microbial food safety. 

Resources Mentioned in This Episode
Congressional Research Service on Food Fraud (included Food Protection Risk Matrix)
GFSI White Paper: Position Paper on Mitigating the Public Health Risk of Food Fraud
SSAFE
Codex Alimentarius
Handwashing: Cool Water as Effective as Hot for Removing Germs
Quantifying the Effects of Water Temperature, Soap Volume, Lather Time, and Antimicrobial Soap as Variables in the Removal of Escherichia coli ATTC 11229 from Hands
 

Would you like to tell us what you think about Food Safety Matters so far? Do you have a suggestion on who we should interview? Are there hot topics you'd like us to cover? Email us at podcast@foodsafetymagazine.com.

Lily Yasuda is the Deputy Director of the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness, where she leads national initiatives that bring together food industry leaders to strengthen food safety culture and support continuous learning across the sector.

Athenais Boeffard is a collaborative and people-focused production leader with over a decade of experience in food manufacturing and food safety. 

John Boyce has over 45 years of experience in various aspects of food production, food safety, quality assurance, sanitation, training, and auditing. 

Rhodes Yepsen joined the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) in 2015, where he leads the organization's efforts to promote the value of compostable products. Rhodes is passionate about systems-based solutions, where there is synergy in solving for food waste and packaging simultaneously—addressing climate change, ecosystem impacts, and regenerative agriculture. Previously, he served on the Board of USCC, worked for biopolymer producer Novamont, and was a staff editor and writer at BioCycle magazine.

Brittney Miller is President of Manchester Farms, America's first quail farm. What started over 40 years ago as a backyard hobby has grown into a nationally recognized, family-owned business that produces more than 80,000 quail weekly, raising them responsibly, without antibiotics or hormones, and shipping premium products to chefs, retailers, and home cooks across the country. Brittney's story is about more than farming: it is about stewardship, innovation, and family values. She combines her passion for sustainable agriculture with modern food safety standards. Her SQF Level 2 certified, HACCP-compliant farm sets the benchmark for quality in specialty poultry.

Mindy Brashears, Ph.D. is the USDA's Under Secretary for Food Safety. Dr. Brashears previously served as Under Secretary for Food Safety from 2020–2021, and Deputy Under Secretary in 2019. Dr. Brashears returns to USDA from Texas Tech University, where she was a Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor of Food Safety and Public Health, the Roth and Letch Family Endowed Chair for Food Safety, and the Director of the International Center for Food Industry Excellence.

Justin Ransom, Ph.D. is Administrator of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), where he oversees FSIS' mission to ensure the safety, wholesomeness, and proper labeling of America's commercial supply of meat, poultry, and processed egg products. He leads the agency's modernization efforts, streamlining inspection systems, strengthening public health protections, and advancing science-based policies. 

Elena Medo, M.B.A. is an entrepreneur, researcher, and inventor who has spent nearly 40 years transforming neonatal care through leadership and innovation. She has secured numerous patents, raised over $40 million across four companies, and built a legacy of firsts, including the first commercially available shelf-stable donor breast milk product; the first milk bank owned exclusively by nursing mothers; and the first medical device designed to analyze human milk. Today, as CEO and co-founder of Leonie Health PBC, established in 2023 with her daughter, Adrianne Weir, Elena is developing a revolutionary product that replicates the immune properties of colostrum to protect preterm infants against the three deadliest neonatal infections—necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAC), and sepsis—which together claim the lives of more than 30,000 hospitalized infants per year.

Alissa Welsher, Ph.D. is a Senior Consultant at Elanco Poultry Food Safety. Dr. Welsher received a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from the University of Pittsburgh, as well as a master’s degree in poultry science and a Ph.D. in cell and molecular biology from the University of Arkansas. Her area of expertise is meat and poultry food safety, and she specializes in integrated pest management (IPM).