Michael Cramer started his food career with Swift and Company at a turkey processing facility in eastern Pennsylvania while attending West Chester University. He graduated in 1977 with a B.S. degree in Health Education. During his career with Swift and Company, he was Quality Assurance (QA) Manager at plants in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, a Production Specialist, and a Documentation Manager at the corporate headquarters.

In 1993, Michael started with Specialty Brands Inc. in Ontario, Canada, where he was Director of Food Safety and Quality. He spent 27 years with the company, and remained as Senior Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA) through the purchase by Ajinomoto Foods North America Inc. He developed and implemented programs to ensure production of safe, quality, ethnic frozen foods. Mike retired from Ajinomoto Foods in July 2021.

Mike has been a member of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP), and was part of the FSQA team at Ajinomoto Foods that won the prestigious Black Pearl Award in 2020. In addition to authoring Food Plant Sanitation, he is also on the Editorial Advisory Board of Food Safety Magazine and has written articles for Food Safety Magazine dealing with Listeria control, biosecurity, sanitation, and sanitary design, and allergens. He was also a contributing member of the American Frozen Foods Institute (AFFI) Listeria Working Group. In addition, he has participated in multiple Food Safety Matters podcasts, conducted food sanitation webinars, and has been a presenter at numerous food safety and quality conferences. He remains active in retirement, giving back to the industry.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to Jay Berglind, the CEO of Aegis Foods and the maker of Fearless Eggs, known for its novel pasteurization process. Jay discusses the science behind Fearless Eggs’ method and what sets it apart from traditional pasteurization, and the importance of food safety innovation.

Tom Black is the First Assistant Secretary of the Exports and Veterinary Services Division at the Australian Government's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry. In this role, he is responsible for regulating and facilitating Australia's exports of animal commodities and certified organic products, while also providing the overarching technical food safety framework for both food exports and imports.

Gabor Molnar, Ph.D. is an Industrial Development Officer at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), technically leading UNIDO's food safety work. As part of his responsibilities, Dr. Molnar designs and implements food safety capacity-building initiatives, mostly in Asia and Africa. He also represents UNIDO in various global forums, including the Codex Alimentarius Commission. Dr. Molnar is the main organizer of the Vienna Food Safety Forum (VFSF) and specializes in the domain of digitalization for food control and safety systems. Dr. Molnar holds a Ph.D. from Université Laval, as well as multiple master's degrees and certifications.

Kris Sollid, RD, is the Senior Director for Research and Consumer Insights at the International Food Information Council (IFIC). A registered dietitian with a passion for improving nutrition science communications, his role at IFIC includes leading consumer research projects, educational resource development, social and traditional media engagement, and written contributions to various consumer, trade, and peer-reviewed publications.

John Spink, Ph.D. is the Director and Lead Instructor for the Food Fraud Prevention Academy, as well as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Supply Chain Management (SCM) in the College of Business at Michigan State University (MSU). His food fraud prevention research focuses on policy and strategy to understand and prevent supply chain disruptions and to implement procurement best practices. He is widely published in leading academic journals and has helped lead national and global regulatory and standards activity. More recently, his teaching and research has expanded to supply chain disruption management and procurement best practices.

Roy Fenoff, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at The Military College of South Carolina (The Citadel). He is also a Forensic Handwriting and Document Examiner and an expert in forgery detection. Dr. Fenoff specializes in forgery and document fraud, food fraud and protection, and transnational crime.

David T. Dyjack, Dr.P.H., CIH has served as Executive Director and CEO of the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) since May 2015. Dr. Dyjack's 30-year career includes expertise in environmental health, emergency preparedness and response, public health informatics, infectious disease, workforce development, governmental infrastructure, maternal and child health, health equity, and chronic disease. A board-certified industrial hygienist, Dr. Dyjack also has advanced degrees in public health with a doctorate from the University of Michigan and a master's degree from the University of Utah.

Kathy Knutson, Ph.D., PCQI, is educated in bacteriology, food science, and education. She speaks, writes, and trains on compliance for the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). She has trained over 500 Preventive Controls Qualified Individuals (PCQIs). Dr. Knutson works with managers to write thorough hazard analyses, food safety plans, recall plans, environmental monitoring programs, and allergen programs. In 2020, she published a book, Food Safety Lessons for Cannabis-Infused Edibles. Dr. Knutson travels to manufacturers for swabbing to locate a pathogen during recall investigations and for gap assessments of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).