Key sessions at this year’s Food Safety Summit will be live streamed for free. The event is set for May 12-15 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL.
The summit brings together government representatives and food safety professionals from academia and members of the industry from across the supply chain, including production, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, and retail foodservice.
The public is invited to attend the live-streamed sessions.
The summit’s premier event, the Town Hall session, is one of the presentations that will be live streamed. This year it includes top federal and industry leaders: Kyle Diamantas of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Denise Eblen of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, Steven Mandernach of the Association of Food and Drug Officials, and Dr. Megin Nichols, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Town Hall session is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. CDT on May 15th and will be available for live streaming. To register for the event in person or virtually visit foodsafetysummit.com.
The Town Hall will feature a Q&A session, giving attendees the opportunity to pose questions directly to the panelists. Panelists are prepared to discuss a range of topics from the impact of emerging technologies and global supply chain complexities to the role of artificial intelligence in inspections and the challenges of allergen control.
Individual panelist presentations:
Kyle Diamantas, the new Acting Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods at the FDA, will kick off the discussion with a focus on regulatory modernization. He will emphasize the FDA’s efforts to streamline and unify its food programs, highlight the importance of data-driven risk prioritization and enhanced responsiveness. Diamantas will outline the agency’s commitment to transparency and stakeholder engagement, stressing that proactive communication is critical in a rapidly evolving food system.
Dr. Denise Eblen, newly appointed Administrator of FSIS, will bring a science-forward perspective to the panel. With a rich background in microbiology and decades of leadership within USDA, Eblen will emphasize FSIS’s commitment to leveraging innovation in inspection methods and public health science. She will spotlight key initiatives aligned with FSIS’s strategic goals — including the integration of predictive analytics and modernization of inspection protocols to better identify and prevent foodborne illness.
Offering a vital perspective from the front lines of state and local enforcement, Steven Mandernach, Executive Director of AFDO, will emphasize the need for harmonization across jurisdictions. He will discuss the challenges and opportunities of building an Integrated Food Safety System (IFSS) — one that connects state, local, and federal partners in real-time information sharing and unified action.
Mandernach will also stress the need for continued workforce development and support for local agencies, which are often under-resourced but serve as the first line of defense in foodborne illness prevention.
Dr. Megin Nichols, Director of the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases at CDC’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, will bring a crucial public health and epidemiological lens to the panel. Nichols will share her extensive experience leading outbreak investigations and her vision for using surveillance data to drive proactive food safety interventions.
Nichols will emphasize the importance of a One Health approach, recognizing the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health in preventing foodborne illness. With a background in veterinary medicine, epidemiology, and food safety policy, she has spent over a decade responding to major multistate outbreaks involving pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli linked to animals and contaminated foods.
Other live streaming sessions
1. Traceability Next Steps — Supply Chain Implementation
Tuesday, May 13 | 8:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. CCT
Government and industry leaders will dive into practical strategies for building and sustaining traceability across the food supply chain. This engaging and highly practical workshop will focus on building and sustaining traceability efforts across the food supply chain. Building on the success of the 2024 Food Safety Summit Traceability session, this year’s discussion will take participants deeper into the how to of traceability, answering critical questions. This interactive session will feature how to develop and sustain a traceability plan; diverse perspectives across the supply chain; implementation perspectives; and insights on the Food Traceability List update and timeline.
Moderators: Tim Jackson, Ph.D. (FDA), Kathleen O’Donnell (Wegmans)
Panelists Include: Christopher Waldrop (FDA); Michael Lookup (Wegmans Food Markets), Patrick Guzzle (National Restaurant Association) Drew McDonald (Taylor Farms), Hilary Thesmar, Ph.D., (FMI), Roberta Wagner (International Dairy Foods Association); Rosalind Zils (Reckitt/Mead Johnson Nutrition), Mike Williams (The Wendy’s Company), and Richard Ryan and Amy Behm (GS1).
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.
2. Effective Sanitation Basics
Tuesday, May 13 | 3 p.m.-5 p.m. CDT
Effective sanitation and monitoring ensure hygienic conditions, and consistent implementation and oversight are fundamental to ensuring food-safe operations. This dynamic workshop will help participants understand the sanitation process, effective monitoring, use of data streams, and root cause analysis basics. Speakers will discuss how to build and maintain an effective sanitation process for routine wet cleaning; teach about non-routine cleaning and validation frequency; and walk through an investigation and root cause analysis to understand complexity and solutions.
Speakers: Sharon Birkett, James Davis (OSI Group); Scott Oakland (Hormel); Eric Ewert (Kraft Heinz)
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.
3. Finished Product Testing Isn’t the Answer
Wednesday, May 14 | 8 a.m. – 9 a.m. CDT
This session will explore the limitations of finished product testing and highlight more effective approaches to ensuring food safety throughout the production process. Panelists will discuss how to evaluate the entire supply chain — from raw materials to final product use — and identify when environmental monitoring may be more informative than end-product testing. Attendees will gain insights into setting practical specifications, interpreting microbial certificates of analysis, and having informed conversations with customers about testing protocols. This engaging and collaborative session invites participants to share perspectives and explore smarter, science-based solutions.
Speakers: Sharon Beals, (SKKB); Peter Taormina, Ph.D., (Etna Consulting Group); Donna F. Schaffner, (Food Safety & Training Consultant) and Jennifer Williams, M.S., (JW Consulting LLC)
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.
4. Leveraging AI for a Safer Today and Tomorrow
Wednesday, May 14 | 2:45 p.m.-4:15 p.m. CDT
This session will highlight some of the early and visible benefits of using AI for data-informed decision making. AI’s potential ranges from use in on-farm agricultural and retail programs to further strengthening FSMS and cultural behaviors. Attendees will learn from experts how AI is making the food system safer. Panelists will address how AI can be leveraged with risk assessment; can be used to make data-informed decisions; and is making produce safer. Speakers: Steven A. Lyon, Ph.D., Purni Wickramasinghe, Ph.D. (Chick-fil-A); Drew McDonald (Taylor Farms)
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.
5. Proven Practices for Allergen Management
Wednesday, May 14 | 4:1p.m.-5:30 p.m. CDT
Gain practical insights into raw material selection, cleaning validation, and labeling to manage allergens in product development and production.
Moderator: Monica Khoury (Nestlé)
Panelists: Phil Johnson, Ph.D. (FARRP); Scott Hegenbart (Conagra)
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.
6. Alarm Fatigue: How to Ensure Out-of-Compliance Alarms Serve Their Purpose and Ensure Food Safety
Thursday, May 15 | 8 a.m. – 9 a.m. CDT
Understand how to set effective temperature alarms and combat alarm fatigue in food safety systems, with guidance on thresholds, response protocols, and pathogen growth models. Panelists will address the impact of alarm fatigue on staff response and food safety outcomes, best practices for setting alarms that are both effective and manageable, and developing a framework for integrating technology and human oversight into food safety protocols.
Speakers: Ben Chapman, Ph.D. (NC State); Robert Prevendar (Yum! Brands); Matt Jenkins (McDonald’s)
Register here to attend this workshop virtually.