Jovana Kovacevic, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor and Food Safety Extension Specialist at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center (OSU’s FIC) in Portland, Oregon. In her current role, Dr. Kovacevic directs the food safety program at FIC and the Western Regional Center to Enhance Food Safety, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Her research uses molecular methods and whole genome sequencing to trace, better understand, and prevent contamination events in the food chain, with particular focus on Listeria monocytogenes. Her work with the Western Regional Center supports the Western U.S. region in food safety training, education, and outreach activities related to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

Prior to joining OSU, Dr. Kovacevic held various positions, including a lecturer at the University of British Columbia, a food safety consultant with the British Columbia Ministry of Health, and a Food Safety Scientist at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control in Canada.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we review the top food safety stories of 2022 and their impacts, the lessons learned, and what the future may hold in 2023 and beyond. Specifically, we discuss COVID-19 and the supply chain, FDA’s Agricultural Water Proposed Rule, food safety culture, the infant formula crisis, USDA-FSIS’ proposed regulatory framework for reducing Salmonella in poultry, the FSMA Food Traceability Final Rule, and the Reagan-Udall Foundation’s review of FDA’s Human Foods Program.

Sandra Eskin was appointed Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in March 2021. In this role, Sandra leads the Office of Food Safety, overseeing the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which has regulatory oversight for ensuring that meat, poultry, and egg products are safe, wholesome, and accurately labeled.

Prior to joining USDA, Sandra was the Project Director for Food Safety at The Pew Charitable Trusts in Washington, D.C. for over 10 years, and also served as the Deputy Director of the Produce Safety Project (PSP) from 2008–2009, a Pew-funded initiative at Georgetown University. Prior to The Pew Charitable Trusts, Sandra spent nearly 20 years as a public policy consultant to numerous consumer advocacy and public interest organizations, providing strategic and policy advice on food and drug safety, labeling, and advertising. She has served as a member of multiple federal advisory committees related to consumer information on prescription drugs, meat and poultry safety, and foodborne illness surveillance. 

Vanessa Coffman, Ph.D. is the Director of the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness. She has a diverse background in food safety and sustainability, with a focus on environmental exposures across the food system. Dr. Coffman has conducted various research for the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), on topics such as farming opportunities in post-war Sierra Leonne, occupational and residential exposures from large pork production operations in rural North Carolina, and the association between nitrate in drinking water from food animal operations and fetal health outcomes. Dr. Coffman previously worked at Stop Foodborne Illness as a policy analyst, and she has testified in front of U.S. government officials, authored peer-reviewed papers, and helped draft federal regulations.

Dr. Coffman received a Ph.D. in Environmental Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an M.S. degree from the University of California–Berkeley in Global Public Health and the Environment.

Sherry Brice-Williamson, M.B.A. is the Vice President of Global Quality and Food Safety at the Kellogg Company, where she oversees end-to-end food safety and quality for Kellogg's internal and external network. Sherry has over 20 years of experience in the industry and joined Kellogg in 2012 as part of the Pringles acquisition from P&G. She has served in numerous supply chain roles in the company, ranging from operations to quality. Sherry was promoted to Vice President of Global Food Safety and Quality in January 2020. 

Sherry is on the SSAFE board of directors and is affiliated with a number of other industry associations such as Stop Foodborne Illness, where she is an Alliance member. Sherry also co-chairs the national chapter of KAARG (Kellogg African American Resource Group). Sherry holds B.S. and M.B.A. degrees in Business Management and is a member of the Golden Key International National Honors Society.

Megan Kenjora, M.P.A. is the Senior Manager of Food Safety Culture at The Hershey Company, where she leads a diverse global team to embed food safety in the hearts and minds of all Hershey employees. Megan has extensive experience building relationships among diverse groups, getting cross-functional support, and effectively communicating messages across cultures.

Megan was an engaged member of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Technical Working Group that authored the GFSI position paper, “A Culture of Food Safety,” and served as the inaugural chair of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) Food Safety Culture Professional Development Group. Bringing a passion for food safety culture, she currently serves on the planning committee and numerous working groups as part of the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness.

A combat veteran who served eight years in the U.S. Army, Megan came to Hershey in 2014 from Raytheon, where she specialized in adult learning for various intelligence courses. She is a lifelong learner and an advocate for DEI, serving as a co-lead for the Hershey Veterans Business Resource Group. Megan is an M.B.A. candidate at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, and she holds an M.P.A. from Penn State University, B.A. degrees in Political Science and Classics from Bucknell University, and a Korean linguist certification from the Defense Language Institute.

David W.K. Acheson, M.D., F.R.C.P., is the President and CEO of The Acheson Group, a consulting firm that provides strategic advice on all matters relating to food safety and food defense, as well as recall and crisis management support, to food companies and ancillary technology companies around the world.

Prior to founding The Acheson Group in 2013, Dr. Acheson served as the Chief Medical Officer in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (FDA's CFSAN). Following several other positions at FDA, he was appointed Associate Commissioner for Foods, which gave him an agency-wide leadership role for all food and feed issues, including health promotion and nutrition. Dr. Acheson was also a partner at Leavitt Partners and managed Leavitt Partners Global Food Safety Solutions from 2009 to 2013.

Dr. Acheson graduated from the University of London Medical School in 1980. Following training in internal medicine and infectious diseases in the UK, in 1987 he moved to the New England Medical Center and Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts. As an Associate Professor at Tufts University, Dr. Acheson undertook basic molecular pathogenesis research on foodborne pathogens, especially Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli.

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.

Dr. Alissa Welsher is Associate Senior Consultant at Elanco Poultry Food Safety. Dr. Welsher received her B.S. degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Pittsburgh, as well as an M.S. degree in Poultry Science and a Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Arkansas. Her area of expertise is molecular physiology, and she specializes in heat stress and gut health.